Varia's boss is a slave driver!
by FallenAngelItachi
Summary: "He woke up after eight years in the ice...so now what?" Wanna know? Francesca Tutsi will help you find out. - pairing will come eventually, Xanxus x OC
1. The man in the basement

**A/N**: So I decided to expand to KHR. I'm crazy with all the rest on going, aren't I? But to be completely fair my other two stories -the other one IS on hiatus already :P - will not suffer. Enjoy~! On a side note, I swear only the first chapter will be like this! It's actually a comedy! Besides, if you look up the definition of comedy is tragic events given with a lighthearted and upbeat way...right? =3

**Beta'd** by Orihara Izaya. Not the one in the manga though...Oh and I own nothing but the OCs. Enjoy~!

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><p>'Get him on the porch already!' snapped one of the men.<p>

'Shush, be quiet; no one must hear us!' the other sounded distraught.

'I know dam it but you won't do as I ask!' he countered hotly, losing his patience.

'Both of you stop arguing; be careful and help them.' An old man's voice cut through the argument, commanding respect.

'Yes boss.'

A new voice asked: 'Why are we bringing him here anyway?'

'For the umpteenth time, don't ask.' Snapped the first man again.

.

.

She started from her sleep alerted from metal clashing on metal and then scraping on the wooden floor of the porch of her -well, considering her age and her purpose of being there not really- house; then she heard voices, conversing between them as if it wasn't some random stranger's place they were breaking into.

She stopped eavesdropping and immediately her brain started turning its big clogs hastily as to what to do: the men sounded not hostile as they hadn't spoken of anything close to killing or robbing or hurting anyone but they were still intruders who came into the manor of a very important person -no, she didn't mean herself or anyone who resided in this building rather the one who owned it- and she had to protect it!

After all, this was the living quarters for her and her aunt who have been in this mansion for the past two years and now they truly considered it as their own, too…disregarding the fact they were kept in there like some sort of prisoners who just happened to be good at science thus they milked them for all they had and as if they weren't free human beings!

Oh what was she thinking all of the sudden! Thank god thinking never stopped her from doing what she meant and she'd already ran upstairs to her aunt's bedroom -which was located at the far bloody end of the admittedly huge house making it impossible to reach her in time in case of an emergency. That was odd; how hadn't she noticed or considered this earlier? Then again they had never been "attacked" before since their manor was close to the man's who owned it own home, the ninth boss of the Vongola family. Plus, they were scientists and really not war-ready material and stuff. And she was also thirteen years old so that was also excused- to wake her up.

But she just wouldn't wake! She nudged her, whispered her name -"aunt Lucretia, wake up~" - she shouted her name, she shook her…but nothing! Why did she have to sleep so heavily? And why did they never care to make an emergency scenario?

Never mind that; she should go back downstairs and deal with the unwanted guests…! Only she had no weapon on her person, nor did she know where some might be stored if they even existed in the house. And she was only a five foot little girl with no experience in man to man combat. Oh yes, she was just bound to win! Note the sarcasm.

She grabbed anything resembling an offensive…item and headed to the door, which was still not breached. And judging from the voices that were still coming from outside they really hadn't come in yet. Wow, that thing they were carrying must have been indeed very heavy, at least about a considerable load in the lines of 100 kilos? She lurked behind the door and raised her…mop -that was the best she could do? Damn it- making sure the ones who came in were in her make-shift weapon's range. She waited…

The door burst open!

'**YAH**!' she shouted as she attacked them with her "bat" and she was sure it connected…only it didn't seem to deal any damaged. Why?

'Ha ha; little Francesca is scared. Relax little one, it's just us.'

When she looked up she finally saw the faces of the "burglars" she realized they were from the family…they were Vongola! And in fact, the four that carried whatever it was that they carried, it were those men who were always seen around the Ninth: his guardians! Well, three guardians and one old sketchy man who bore a striking resemblance to the said boss, Nono-…oh her catholic God, it **was** Nono!

'Nono! Nono's guardians! What are you doing here in the middle of the night…?' suddenly she coloured like she just realized an offense made to her. 'And I'm not little; I'm 13 years old…almost!'

She was complaining yet thought she should make herself useful; after all she was in the presence of her family's boss so she hurried and opened the wooden double doors to enable them in their task. And then she saw what it was that they were struggling to bring inside: it was a huge…ice sculpture? Um, that was odd; their experiments had nothing to do with ice so why was this here? And she couldn't really see well with all the dark but it appeared the ice sculpture served as some sort of an encasing.

The youngest of the bunch laughed; 'but you haven't even grown a chest yet, no?'

She became so red, the emergency button looked faded in comparison.

'I'm still developing!' she protested fervently and with her small hands in contrast with the men's in front of her she started hitting him; it was one of the things about herself she felt bad with.

'Ha ha; little Francesca is still too young.'

'Ganauche, stop teasing her and help us pull.' the man next to the one who called her little said simply but managed to spare a smile for the young girl.

Nono came into the house, the last of the four, and closed the doors behind them once the…thing was inside. 'Visconti, relax…Francesca dear child, why don't you go awaken your aunt? We need both your help.'

'Right away Nono…'

She went immediately; given they weren't there because an impending attack was about to happen, or else he would have brought an army, and given they brought that odd ice sculpture in it meant their reason for being there had everything to do with that or something pertinent to it. Was it research-new research material? Was it something else? She was dying to know! Plus, she really wanted to see what it contained!

'Aunt Lucretia;' she shook the older woman 'aunt Lucretia' she even slapped her, this once 'Wake up you!'

…she snored.

'UGH!'

She was desperate; and desperate times call for desperate measures! She looked all around her for a tool-something to help her with her most peculiar task: wake her aunt up in the middle of the night. There hadn't been a reason to do so before thus it was only natural she'd just found out she was a heavy sleeper.

...but then she spotted it: a vase with real flowers inside it! And real flowers only meant one thing: water! And that was perfect for waking someone up, right? Eh-he-he…

She approached her aunt and-SPLASH!

'AW!'

'Finally!' before she starts thundering and swearing -and she could be quite colourful, too- she explained everything 'come downstairs quickly! Nono is here and he asked for you!'

Lucretia seemed shocked 'you said Nono-!'

'He brought something with him, like a sculpture out of ice; do you have any idea what it-?'

Yet her aunt didn't allow her to finish; an ice sculpture by the Nono in here in the middle of the might could only mean one thing: someone was doing something very bad yet he was at the same very important. 'Let's go.'

She threw a robe on hastily and almost flew by the staircase that led to the ground floor; she came upon the sight right away. There was indeed and ice-cased man in her living room that appeared to be important if the ones who brought him were Nono and his guardians. As soon as the men percepted her, some eyes were attracted to her curves -making the young girl self aware of her own unwomanly body-. But Nono merely nodded towards the ice sculpture...and her aunt immediately knew: he wanted her to open up the labs...

She nodded in a quick reply and ran to her study there on the ground floor with the boss and her niece behind her; behind her desk, concealed by a small bookcase that appeared solid yet was removable, there was a secret rather large button. As she pushed it, a deafening sound signalled heavy shaking of the floor...

And what felt a lifetime away to the old man, but in reality had only been some seconds, the floor slowly shifted and pulled; it revealed a huge underground entrance with a flight of stairs which appeared to be leading...downwards. To the secret labs of the mansion. That was the very reason the two women were "trapped" in this house...

The three men in their tuxedos, looking sharp as always, finally appeared, carrying the ice sculpture to the part of the open floor in front of the desk of Lucretia's study; turning on the lights to help them with their load, she conversed with the ninth about the circumstances.

'Who is the person you brought here frozen?'

_A person? The ice contains an actual human being? How cruel...yet wicked!_

'It's a man I love yet must tow away for the sake of the people who killed and the people who'd be led by him should it have gone otherwise: my son Xanxus.'

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><p>=:=:=:=<p>

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><p>Francesca Tutsi was an average twenty one year old woman: her hair was black and long, her eyes were black and warm, her skin a little darker, because it was summer and she loved sitting at the balcony, and her height didn't exceed that of the average of 1.65 centimetres. And when she was walking down the street with her shopping and grocery bags in her hands she could pass like any regular girl of her age...<p>

But she wasn't. Francesca had a secret.

Her car was a modest FIAT Punto, Italian brand of course, which was also used as a storage for all of her shopping: new dress and everything that entails, groceries, and of course candy snacks for her and her aunt who lived together and all alone in a manor lost in the woods far away from prying eyes.

But were they truly alone? There was a third person living there with them for the past eight years of their solitary life, give or take a few months: a man forgotten by time, by his father and the world...Xanxus. Nono's son lived frozen in their laboratories in the mansion's secret basement.

That was her secret.

Of course that wasn't the only reason she was irregular; she was also a researcher and a doctor despite her young age, renounced for it in her family...which was the mafia. Right; that qualifies the third reason this young woman wasn't normal: she was a researcher and a doctor who would be soon having her debut, she was a Mafioso by birth and she had a frozen man decorating her basement.

No wonder she could never get herself in a relationship that lasted beyond a month. Her aunt always told her "no one must know the whereabouts of the place in which you reside" as an extra precaution thus her relationship usually ended at the part where the occasional boyfriend would ask her to trust him...

She drove to her temporary household -temporary and ten years worth of staying didn't seem so solid to her but she just humoured herself- and after parking her car in the small area designated for that purpose, she carried her bags inside, while looking for her aunt. She first put the groceries in the fridge though, no need to get a stomach-ache from spoiled milk.

She took a deep breath: 'Aunt? You there?' she shouted at the top of her lungs; at a house so large and with only two persons inhabiting it, it was the easiest way to be heard-never mind cell phones.

'Basement!' came the muffled cry of her aunt in reply.

Immediately she headed to the study and seeing the hanger door already open, she descended the stairs and headed to the labs, her bags containing her new dress and the rest of its followings in her hands.

'Hello there aunt Lucretia; how are you this lovely evening?' asked the girl, kissing the older woman on the cheek as soon as she spotted her.

Already in her lab uniform and with a test tube in her hands, the blond had her blue eyes fixated on the chemical reaction if the liquid. It was boiling...success! She let the test tube down and wrote the results on the paper in front of her. 'Hey sweetie' she said, never looking up before she checks everything is as it should be on her sheet 'good evening.'

When she made sure all was well, she finally looked up. She beamed at Francesca as soon as she saw the bags and the firm printed on them. 'What sexy dress did you buy after all?' she asked wickedly and smirked at her now thrilled beyond words niece who was so impatient one thought she was struggling to stay in one place.

'Ooh, it's sublime; I have to show you! -_sublime?_ _What a word to use..._ but ignoring her aunt's teasing she went on- I bought this fabulous dress and its matching heels and-oh, I brought you your favourite chocolate, too' she said thoughtfully reaching in one of the bags and throwing her a bar she went on like she had never interrupted herself 'and I bought the underwear and jewellery to match it, too!'

'Ha ha' laughed Lucretia as she bit into the bar she had skilfully caught 'you went all out I see...'

'Well, this is the first time in a year I went to shop something for myself all by myself' said the girl a little edgy as she ransacked the bag with all the candy to find her own personal favourite flavour 'and what's more this is the dress I'll be wearing to Nono's party in three days from now! Isn't that amazing? I'll finally be going to one of these parties he holds this time every year! And I'll finally get to debut, too! Ooh, I'm so excited!' she munched down on her own chocolate 'Van' me oo tie zem o?'

'Don't speak with your mouth full...! But yeah, go try them on!' she finished excited herself.

With the snack hanging from her mouth, she smiled incredibly widely and clapped her hands in delight; she then grabbed all the bags with the clothing in one hand and the one with the candy with the other and bolted up to change.

'My, my...what a lively twenty one year old...' her aunt commented shaking her head amused.

She couldn't say it was unnatural she was somewhat childish as all of her childhood, she'd spent it in this house away from all real-life problems, surrounded by books and lab tests instead of friends and boys. That was bound to diminish her people skills...after all, when she came into this "prison" of sorts, she was already married and a mother of a four year old child, accomplished and at the very least happy with how much she had experienced, even at the age of twenty eight.

Well, she did see her family monthly even here, but Francesca wasn't quite as lucky; seeing her parents were in charge of the Spanish Vongola branch, they rarely managed to leave the base they were controlling. In fact last time she saw her parents live and not trough a web cam was four years ago when they'd come to report to Nono on their situation...

But Lucretia hated the fact she only had two nights a month away from this house as much as she hated the fact her son was now fourteen years old and she hadn't been there for the most part. Or the fact her husband cheated on her and due to the fact she wasn't there most of the time he did a very sloppy job at hiding it. But her research was important to the family. Besides, her sister -Eloisa-, Francesca's mother, had told her: that's what you get for marrying a man with no ties to the family thus has no sense of duty towards it.

She sighed; she really loved him though, faithful or not, and she put up with his cheating because she knew they weren't serious, just occasional sex, some let out.

-'You're crazy; I'd have him hanged from his toes!' Francesca had told her, truly appalled, when she had coaxed her into finally telling her what was that made her so sad.-

But she didn't mind; she smiled like she knew nothing and her husband never seemed to want a divorce or even complain about the status-quo of their marriage.

'Ta-duh!'

Francesca's overjoyed exclamation snapped her out of her musing; when she looked up she saw her niece dressed in all formality with her dazzling new gown and her stunning new high heels with a brand new snack hanging from her mouth and a mess of a hair.

She laughed; how unfitting an image!

But what a dress! Her niece inherited not only her aunt's wits but also her impeccably good taste: emerald green silk was hugging her curves -smoothing out others- with a high collar which consisted of other but similar fabric that "protected" the nape of her neck, sleeveless with a relatively big for her niece's small chest neckline. It was long, with the matching high heeled sandals it still covered all the way to the floor -but she could see them because Francesca was holding it up-, and straight. As she turned around, she saw the back was bare and led all the way to the small of her back.

'How lovely dear! This dress is absolutely fantastic! I love everything about it-the colour is so sophisticated and the neckline-oh the neckline! And the back! Ooh, now I'm jealous—why didn't you buy one for me, too?'

As her niece screw up her face in an attempt of showing discontent or mockery she stuck her tongue out. 'Just kidding; you deserve to go with a new dress and this is all about you.'

'I know...' she commented meaningfully but still beamed. 'And the underwear's completely wicked, too! Both bra and thong black with lace and golden bling at the front of the bra and the back of the thong as a heart shaped clasp.'

'Ooh...'

'I know right?'

'Well, take it off then to see the-!'

'No way in hell am I taking this dress off! I shall wear it and love it-

'And call it Bob'

-and shut up and I will make sure I'm used to it and the shoes by the time of the party! Oh I'm so excited I'll be finally going to one of these! I've been looking forward to it ever since I was...three!'

'Yeah, yeah, I know honey, you've been saying so non-stop for the past three weeks now-ever since I announced you'd be going instead of me.'

'Oh shut up!' she snapped and now it was her turn to stick her tongue out. 'I know I've been insufferable but honestly, this is the first time I'm allowed to go to a grown-ups party! Even if I turned eighteen three years ago. And even if I should have debuted then…'

Lucretia pouted. 'We did have serious work to do but now, since one breakthrough was already made...'

She sighed '...right. I'm just over the moon is all...and you know what?' she changed to hyper again 'I'll have the best date ever, too!'

'What?' her aunt leaned in interested 'you have a hot date?' she drawled as she nudged her niece on the shoulder with her own. 'Who might be?'

'Why your son of course!'

'...ha-ha-ha! OK, he is the best date!'

'Of course; if only were he a decade older I could actually flaunt him...'

'Well it's not my fault I'm the youngest out of three and your mother the oldest.'

'Humph! Whatever; I'm taking your snacks.'

'What-hey!' she was actually taking them! 'What are you-!'

'It's your fault for being the youngest.' countered the young woman so naturally one would think it was actually a decent reason.

Her aunt pouted but said nothing; she knew her niece had man trouble and quite frankly she couldn't help! They were both supposed to remain in the house at all times-or at least one of them was- ever since Xanxus came and apparently they couldn't just leave him alone, not for a moment. There was of course their research to be considered, too as the experiments the tests and the trials required both women to be present for the most part so they couldn't afford more than two nights out of the house monthly and by no means should they be out simultaneously.

And ever since they brought Xanxus, who none of the two knew why he was frozen as no one bothered telling them anything else other than "we had to take care of him" -and since it was Nono who'd done it, they didn't say anything-, and given this was top secret and the rest of the Vongola family didn't even know he was frozen, they had to keep quiet about it and tell no one of their true reason for not going out as much as they used to –every weekend unless they didn't feel like it-. That created a slight strain on her marriage, truth be told.

So they all knew that Xanxus was somewhere out there, preferably the Varia Headquarters -as the rumours had it- eating and drinking his life away and controlling the independent assassination squad from the shadows...

Now why one would think he would do nothing but eat and drink his life away, doing nothing else than spouting orders and lazy about, it always presented an impossible conundrum to Francesca. After all, he didn't seem to be the type to idly bide his time doing nothing.(*)

Francesca was but thirteen years old when he was brought to them and the very first time she ever saw him, frozen in that pillar -looking so eternally pissed-, she'd thought: this must be a very scary and vigorous man.

As time went by and she became older and older and after confining in him her problems, her worries, her happiness and her hopes -because every single time something big, good or bad, happened to her she ran to the far end of the labs to him- she realized not only did he look angry but also sad and lonely. His eyes betrayed the loneliness-that loneliness one feels only when you know no one can understand you...but he never looked inactive. Hell, he was in a defensive/battle-ready stance-he couldn't look lazy!

Well, if she had to be honest with herself she had developed that huge crush on him -in her defence she was only fifteen at the time- and she never liked lazy men instinctively so she knew he couldn't be the type to sit around doing nothing and move only when he had something _he_ had to do. He just couldn't be!

.

.

'I'll be going to your father's ball at the end of the next week!' had said the girl a week ago to the man she was currently staring at with the bag of snacks next to her, of course in her new dress.

She was just standing there, looking at his frozen, never-changing expression. So much emotion reflected into his eyes, so much longing and revenge! She felt he mirrored her own emotions -minus the wanting revenge part- of how much she wanted to go to this damn dance! And now her wish was finally coming true...!

Of course, this being Xanxus' special room it was close to a refrigerator-the basic principals anyway: permanently emitted cool air to keep the temperature the same with the ice so under no circumstances would it melt even from something as tedious as this while they had custom made machinery to produce sound waves to both keep him sedated and make sure he's safe, as the machines' echo provided them with a full report on his status. After all, their job was not only to keep him in the ice but also alive...

The surface of the ice was not to be touched and in the extreme situation it was required iron gloves as well as no human hand at all were the only ones allowed to touch it as even the slightest of heat signals might awake him, especially after such along slumber and considering the fact his vitals seemed to be spiking lately. That was just how stubborn and skilful this man was in Francesca's opinion, another trait she absolutely adored about him.

In fact the girl -now young adult- revered him, Xanxus, a man who at his sixteen years of age had the guts to do something like opposing his father in such a radical way that he had to be frozen in order to be stopped, no matter how well she thought of Nono. She admired his strength and his decision to be his own man and a leader-because he did have people following him, even the well known swordsman Superbia Squalo who despite of is young age he was to be the leader of Varia had Xanxus not taken control. Of course, she'd never actually met Squalo or any other member of the Varia, it was only hearsay.

Alas, she couldn't come in direct contact not just with Xanxus but Squalo and generally everyone else that she didn't already know, as far as the members of the family were concerned. And of course she was prohibited from doing anything that might awaken the man from his cryostasis and she didn't even want to on the first place-she didn't want to be charged with anything, even if they were keeping things under wraps-. So she only just stood there, in front of the ice-casted man, usually sitting in front of the direction he was looking at.

'Hey Xanxus! I bought the dress I was telling you about; see? I'm wearing it now!'

She made a fast turnaround.

'Well, in fact I hope you can't see or hear anything in there or else this would be close to torture for you but then again...if you could see and hear wouldn't it be too lonely to always be by yourself? Ah...I really hope you wake up one day -I mean, Nono gives us the word- because I'd really like to know who you really are. Would you like my dress? Me? Would you prefer being alone? Or would you take me with you, away from this place...? Oh, what am I saying all of the sudden, ha-ha...! Ah man, thank god you can't respond to my dreadful sense of humour. Anyway I'll be going now! I have to get used to these shoes-they are so cruel to my poor feet. So b'bye!

'I hope next time I see you, you're awake!'

That was how she finished her talks to him for the past three years; she figured if there was one wish he'd like, that would be it. Plus, she wasn't naive enough to believe he was a people's person so she knew this was best thing to keep saying to him, especially in the odd case he could hear her-as repeating "hope I see you again" was very ironic seeing how he couldn't move...at all.

Still, she left and ran back up and into the garden and went to frolic in her new beautiful garb.

Her aunt shook her head amused as she saw her practically zoom by before she ascended the stairs cheerfully. Only then did it occur to her what a sheltered and controlled life her niece was leading: no real relationships, no real heartache, parents who knew when and where their youngest child and only daughter was at all times...it almost felt unfair to her, how much more to Francesca herself. Yet, the girl showed no real signs of depression; merely sporadic displays of frustration, anger and indignation which by all means were completely justified yet they were just that. No sense of pent up aggression. No tells of bottled hostility towards her parents or even her, Lucretia, the immediate reminder of her metaphoric cage.

Lucretia had wondered at a time, when her little cute niece was but sixteen years of age -usually at the rebellious stage- how and why _didn't_ she get depressed...only to find her questions answered as one night she watched her sneaking off, thinking her aunt was asleep -and she would have been, too had she not felt the end of her research (at the time) was within the palm of her hand- and going into Xanxus' room.

It hadn't taken long for the woman to understand her niece was crushing on the young Mafioso while at the same time he served as her anti-drug. Or maybe that was why she was crushing over him. Who knew? Her niece was deep and weird like that.

And she couldn't blame her for her choice, too; had she not been more than ten years older than him, married with a child she might have been crushing on him, too. He was a very good-looking albeit rough man. Well, if anything the whole gruff-imposing-scary looking thing made him look sexier...to her.

Heh! No wonder she was in such a relationship...

So, conversing maybe for hours on no end with the frozen man became the girl's way out of a harsh reality which would most probably lead her to depression...a depression the aunt was experiencing right about now. She didn't know if it was in place of Francesca or generally because her life sucked so bad she wouldn't have minded being the one in the cryostasis, but she was feeling it. And seeing her twenty one year old, barely an adult, coddled and spoiled niece who was thrown into cruel, pampered and lonely reality coping much better than she did -prancing around in gorgeous dresses instead of sulking- she felt even worse.

She took the final step, the thin line she always feared to tread, regarding of her ego; she'd mimic Francesca and talk to Xanxus -located about a mile away from her- who was always there, unmoving non-judging...

She'd grabbed a half-empty bottle from her scotch stash -her favourite liquor- and when she made sure her niece was far and away, only then did she make a run for it, not paying attention her feet were bare or her lab coat was long gone...

Oh how Lucretia wished the man would wake up right now and before she even knew it he whisked her away from everything, making her Varia's first lady...well, if she could take her son along that is because she'd never go anywhere without him.

But what childish thoughts was she having-the thought of flight had never crossed her mind so openly before...especially with another man. Usually, when she ran away in her little fantasies she hurried back to her husband's arms, Alfredo, and all three of them left the mafia for good by going to another country -Greece she had decided, where the climate was similar, the people were similar yet she had no family she knew of there-.

But now it was different; what changed? Maybe the fact her husband cheated so much was finally sinking in or she did mind more than she let on after all. Maybe distance didn't make the heart grow fonder. Maybe she just needed a way out of this pointless life.

She could positively say she hated her family, the Vongola. She hated she was imprisoned in this manor without being able to see anyone other than her cohabitant for the most part. She hated she had given up her whole life just for the sake of her family who was never there for her. No, they were never there, not even her oldest sister. They only used her genius -hers and her poor niece's who sadly took after her aunt and not her mother (who shamelessly fed her to these dogs so effortlessly)-. They never did anything for her, anything at all, while she had broken her back helping them, sacrificing her everything for those sodding bastards!

Right at that moment all she wanted to do was pick up anything and just throw it on Xanxus' icicles in the off chance he did wake and decided to wreck havoc again and -hopefully- this once kill Nono, the man responsible for all of her problems. Maybe under Xanxus' reign she would be given some slack. Maybe he would never separate a couple like that!

.

.

She was crouching, the bottle of scotch now empty of its contents, lying next to her. She had gone so close to the man in the ice she could almost touch him. She even thought she saw his eyes move...and that was when she realized she was too drunk to think straight. Hell, she even hallucinated! It wouldn't even strike her as odd if she'd actually been shouting all those things she'd been thinking of.

She looked up at Xanxus again; she could swear her eyes were playing tricks on her as she could also swear she saw his permanently angry expression changing if only to look at her...wow, she was being a bad drunk again!

Yet, there was something there in his eyes, mesmerizing, and as much as she wanted, tried and eventually managed to look away, she couldn't do it for more than a second-something in his eyes just made her want to look at him.

A cracking sound was heard; suddenly the machine around her was shaking all over and the source of the small tremor was...the ice! Or, to be accurate, the man inside the ice-the man was waking!

Her chin dropped.

Shocked beyond comprehension, she just stood there and watched, propped against the cool quality of the ice cascading the man. When did she move all the way to physically touch the ice? Why hadn't she realized she went there? Her -till a second ago- dead brain went to overdrive now: this was what she had been spending her nights locked up in there for the past eight years of her life to avoid! The odd case he started waking she was to stop it from happening! And she knew full well what she had to do: she had to activate the emergency sequence where the machine would emit double the cold air much more rapidly while its other part would inject him with sedative and other drugs and put him back into cryostasis...

...yet, even if her brain literally screamed for her to get up and get a move on already to stop this, her body simply wouldn't obey. She couldn't move an inch. Then again, couldn't or wouldn't she? She'd never know; she just stood there rigid and gobsmacked, staring into the eyes of the man who was regaining his consciousness and mobility slowly -yet much faster than she'd expected to be attainable for him- while the ice shook more and more.

Until...

'KYAAAAH!'

'Ah...ah...ah...'

The ice exploded!

The young woman watched the young man being released from his cool prison while at the same time she was watching and checking the amount of function he mustered over his limbs. It had left him for the most part, the woman noted in her brain under the topic: "side-effects from cryostasis after a long period of time" while she didn't fail to notice scars all over his face and many parts of his body that were visible. His face bore the most of them analogically.

She coughed but it didn't bother her; what really bothered her was the fact she was looking at him from so far away. Why such distance? She was standing but a foot next to him. She coughed again; then she felt it...the metallic taste in her mouth. Blood? Yet, it was; she would never forget that bitter taste or its scent, especially after all the experiments she made that blood was their main feature. She was bleeding and not just from her mouth. She could feel the watering all over the skin her blouse covered from her stomach and downwards; so it was her stomach...

But what about the pain? Oh, it must have been the ice; it worked as a paralyzing factor and she could pretty much feel nothing; adding that to the liquor she had consumed prior to this, she wasn't entirely surprised. But then she looked at herself: one of the biggest ice-pieces had pierced her, threw her and pinned her all the way to the wall, halfway across the room.

She was...dying. No wonder everything appeared to be in slow motion; her every sense was heightened and she could see him looking at her with a slightly less pissed and more curious expression. Heh! What beautiful eyes...and what a beautiful burden did she leave her young blossoming and beloved Francesca...her eyes felt too heavy to leave them open. Her ragged breathing slowly came to a stop and she let the complete and absolute darkness claim her.

She closed her eyes for the final time.

* * *

><p><strong>AN**:(*)How wrong can one person be you know...? This is Xanxus; he is madness! xD

Now, bear with me pretty please! I know it's a sort of heavy first chapter with the aunt's death and all but I swear it IS a comedy and if you stick around you'll see that from the next chapter even. So review and/or message me to tell me first impressions! ^^"


	2. Awakened!

**A/N**: Chapter number two is here! Continuing with the story, like I promised less angst...and guess who's up and about! Enjoy~!

**Beta'd** by Orihara Izaya

* * *

><p>'Aunt Lucretia? Aunt? Aunt! Where are you, come on don't play around!'<p>

She'd been looking for her for a while now and she was nowhere to be seen: not to her favourite laboratory, not to her study, not to her bedroom, not to the kitchen, not even further into the labs, in that order. And she couldn't have gone all the way to Xanxus...right?

No, that would be ridiculous! But it was the only place left. But -if she did- why did she go? They'd already run all of the necessary tests and she was certain her aunt wouldn't go to him to spill her guts out, like she did.

...But what did she have to lose? To hell with it, she'd go! After all, her aunt had many more things to talk about to an indisposed man than her so she might as well be fuming to him by now, instead of her cheating bastard of a husband...

As she reached the remote room, she could swear she felt something in her gut clutch painfully; why was that? Maybe she'd walk in on a very personal confession and shouldn't go in there after all...but she really had to find her.

She heard coughing-lots of it! What was happening? For how long has her aunt been in there to cough so badly? Was she choking on liquor again? She had developed a drinking problem these past four years -she pretended she didn't notice so she wouldn't feel like her forty-year-old mature aunt had to explain to her naive self-. She only hoped it wasn't anything serious.

But she did realize the coughing came from the centre of the room; so, after she makes herself heard, she only has to turn the lights on-...

She was thunderstruck; she couldn't believe her eyes.

The first thing that fell into her field of vision was her aunt, propped against the wall. Blood was staining her clothes, the wall, the...icicle? And a little pool of it, right under her feet which were in the air...but what she couldn't tear her sights away from even if she found it completely and utterly disgusting was that huge icicle that protruded from her stomach, pinning her there.

Unmoving, her head on the side and lifeless, it made her feel like a rag doll set up for some horror movie; Francesca's insides twisted and turned!

'Oh God!' she managed to say before she falls on her knees and gags. 'Ah!' she started coughing while feeling all of her food disappearing.

_Is she-...how can she be...? Is this real? And how long has she been there like that? According to the amount of blood loss, the temperature and her habit of drinking it can't have been more than an hour._

She was thinking while practically crawling to the body and then touching the forehead with shaky hands. Her temperature was too low, even for a dead person. _I have to get her out of this! The icicle hasn't even melted though due to the air-conditioning so that means it has to be filled and-...wait. Ice? And there also was some coughing...oh my god! Xanxus! He's awake!_

Only then did she register the real significance behind the shuttered ice that her brain realized but hadn't processed yet due to the fact her aunt took priority: the ice in the middle of the room had been lodged on the wall; or on the machine; or on her aunt. It meant it broke. And Xanxus was awake! He had regained consciousness...and caught a cold.

He was coughing after all.

She felt a strong sense of foreboding as a shadow loomed over her; she turned around and saw him! His eyes looked much less angry now yet much more determined and superior. He had a bad case of coughing and shivering yet he still looked intimidating!

But her brain clicked in a different way upon seeing him...

'You...! You killed her! You killed my aunt!' she yelled!

Feeling her own anger burning higher in her throat and in her chest-she attacked him!

Screw fear! Screw the fact he could produce flame without the help of the dying will bullet or the rings! She'd get him for this!

She sprang on him like a wild cat with nothing but her claws and her fists as a weapon; taking him completely by surprise -_he probably figured he'd attack first_, the girl thought somewhat smug she managed to overtake him- he allowed her to knock him down. But that was as much as his already hurt pride was willing to take: he grabbed her wrists, twisted them and trapped them on the cold floor.

'Let go of me, let go! I'll kill you! I'll fucking kill you! You killed her-my aunt, you did and I'll-...!'

'You'll shut the hell up right now. And even if I had killed her why should I even apologize? She was the one stupid enough to get herself killed by leaning against the ice...'

He was no longer fighting with her; he was sitting on top of her stomach with his eyes closed looking bored, angry and tired all at the same time. He wasn't even putting an effort into it -his hands were crossed over his chest- but he still seemed to have the desired effect.

But his words stroke her; had he slapped her instead he was sure she wouldn't pipe down so abruptly and easily. She'd immediately stopped struggling and just gaped.

'Th-that can't be...she knows that's forbidden! She was the one who realized it on the first place so either you're lying-!'

'You shut the fuck up or I make you; I've just about had it with your running mouth.'

She did it; she didn't know why but she felt he was telling the truth on both accounts: he'd make her shut up himself if she didn't on her own and her aunt did do something as stupid as touching the ice. Aware of her problem with alcohol she knew it was a very strong probability given she even spotted a broken bottle of scotch close to the machine -a bottle that wasn't there when she left this room some hours ago; plus scotch was her favourite drink-. Considering she'd been drinking all the time she was here and the fact she smelt no spilled alcohol then she could easily touch the ice and not even realize-maybe to lift herself, maybe for general support...

'You know how to listen; that's good. Get up and bring me that bag with the food from there. I'll eat those while you'll be preparing me a real meal. And seeing there is an empty bottle then there is alcohol in this house. Bring me some of that, too-I prefer tequila. And after you're done with all of those bring me a phone. And you'll say to no one I'm revived yet.'

She was looking at him astonished. He was already making plans! He certainly didn't waste any time!

'What are you still doing here?'

'Y-you're sitting on me...'

He glared at her through one opened eye annoyed. 'I won't repeat myself.' said he severely, making her hair stand straight at the nape of her neck.

He was dangerous. And she felt she shouldn't disobey him, at least not now; she did exactly as he told her: she gulped, feeling her throat dry and scurried away from him in a slight panic; she hurried to the snack bag and after hesitating for a bit -should I throw it to him or will he consider it disrespect?- she took it to him. Then she disappeared upstairs...

.

.

It was very handy she was compliant he thought as he devoured the first thing he found in that bag -he was so hungry no words could describe it- instead of loud. After all she only lashed out when she thought he'd killed her aunt. Understandable. And she wasn't feisty or a pushover which was at least surprising for a scientist in his opinion.

So now he only had to gather his troops, his Varia soldiers, and he'd be on his way to getting the family back-well, the position of the head of the family anyway. So he needed to know how long he was in this ridiculous cryostate see what it did to him and if that stupid scum Squalo was by any chance still alive or if he was killed after the incident or if he died on some mission.

Shit, there were many things he had to know and he had to have that woman...girl...well her, to answer, he thought as he was finishing the last candy in that bag. And she definitely would -if she valued her life- when she'd return with his food and alcohol. Food huh; what would she cook? She'd better have made meat!

He heard his stomach rumble; damn it! He was too hungry to think straight-to think he even cared for what happened to Squalo. She better be back with his food -his solid, tasty, salty food- before the next five minutes were up-he hadn't noticed but it had been an hour already!

As if she was listening in on his thinking, she made her reappearance just then.

In truth, she had no idea what to cook for him; she figured he'd want something he liked eating before he went into cryostasis so making one of his favourite dishes was a good way to go. Only she had no idea what that was. Perfect! Thankfully though they did have tequila. But hold on a second, he was coughing earlier. Should she make soup instead? No, she was perfectly sure he'd sooner throw it at her than eat it; she should merely check on his vitals later, after he'd eaten, because truthfully he was surely weakened and shaky. And if he had a sore throat she should just give him a cough drop later.

But what if he thought she was insensitive or -even worse- she didn't pay attention to something she should have noticed...? Cutting onions and putting water into a pot to boil she saw tears falling on her hands. And she could feel them on her cheeks, too. But why was she crying? Beef or soup was no real reason...and after all her aunt had only just died, the woman she spent all of her pre-teens, teenage-hood and young-adult years whom she loved from the bottom of her heart more than her own mother, the woman who was always there for her no matter what and had a lovely child behind and she was now growing cold on the wall of a god-forsaken lab with a huge icicle in her gut-

_I can't, I can't believe she's-gone; she can't be, she can't have died, not just like that, not by a mistake! I should have been there, should've helped her with her problems! We should have talked more, I should've confronted her about her drinking issue and not just watch her drink herself to sleep because she had a dick of a husband like I could do nothing about it! She was-if I were-...if only had I-...no, why? Why...?_

The characteristic "tink!" of the oven woke her from her guilt-ridden stupor. She hadn't even realized when she had prepared everything-she didn't even know how long she'd been standing there! She only knew it was about time she went downstairs and fed that bad-mannered, pissed man she was now housing.

'Xanxus right?' she inquired firmer than she'd thought as she stood before him with the tray holding the foods and drink.

'I doubt you don't know the name of your subject; tell me yours.'

She bit her lip guiltily; she overestimated his tolerance for meaningless courtesy. 'I'm Francesca Tutsi. Here's your food. I don't know what you like so I made you a stake with some risotto and a...um, soup in case you wanted something for the coughing.'

He raised the same eyebrow.

'And I also brought you your tequila!' she added hastily and hopefully it would serve as her saving grace.

He was very difficult. Not only did he not get up from where he was sprawled on the floor after she left him, he was indirectly enough letting her know he wouldn't be getting up to be served but she'd be bringing it to him there. She really hoped she wouldn't have to spoon-feed him, too...

She carefully disposed of the tray right next to him on the floor, expecting his reaction...when he gave her another raised eyebrow she realized with great relief he wanted to eat without her hovering. That was fortunate indeed as she was sure had he wanted to, she'd do it-she was just that scared.

'Stop your crying; she's dead.'

She jumped; was she still crying? She would have sworn her tears stopped by themselves out of sheer fear upon seeing him when she entered the room and saw him.

'I said stop crying.'

'S-sorry...'

_Oh hey, why the hell did I just apologize?_

'Stop sniffing too-goddamn it that's why I hate girls! She's dead because she was stupid enough to come here drunk; are you stupid enough to keep crying?'

Suddenly something broke inside her; she wouldn't allow him to talk like that for her dead sweet aunt! 'Look here mister congeniality, currently I am the only person alive able to take care of you in your struggle against the side effects of the cryostasis; if you want your limbs stop trembling and your mouth stop twitching and your muscles stop feeling so rigid you can barely hold the fork I suggest you don't kill me! And yes, I know all of these; my stupid aunt predicted they'd happen and judging from your face she was right! That means only we can take care of you and seeing how you've already accidentally killed off one of us I suggest you get along with the remaining one-namely me!'

She didn't know what came over her, but she had to get it out of her chest; she couldn't actually believe she said all those things though. Had it not been for the thoroughly amazed, angry yet calculating stare Xanxus was giving her, she could swear she imagined she vented on him.

_I hate to admit it but I need her for the medical examinations...so I can't kill her. Does that mean I'll have to take her with me? If she's been holed up in here it only means someone is checking on them, probably daily. So I have to live this place tonight._

'I suggest you cooperate as well; you never know how many good scientists' he rubbed his fingers together, signalling he meant he'd buy people off 'will be willing to help me. So be grateful to my magnanimosity I'm letting you live on the first place.' he simply threatened and took a spoonful from the soup...he froze with an expression of disgust; she immediately started backing up. 'What's with this terrible taste?' he snapped suddenly 'it's like shit! I hate chicken-soup; fix me another one now!'

He physically threw her the bowl-

'Eep!'

-and even though the plate missed her, its contents didn't. 'Ugh...' she did disgusted mourning the part of her hair that were showered. She'd had a bath right before she'd left the house that evening...at least the dress was still safe.

'And what's with the dress? Go put something else on-something more suitable for someone like you.'

She coloured almost by instinct to that. 'S-someone like me?' she hissed. 'What is that supposed to me-?'

One look was all it took; she gulped and turned the other way. 'D'you want a seafood flavoured soup instead?' Why did she lose her nerve so easily...?

'I want the phone I asked for.'

Oh right; she'd almost forgotten about that. Of course, not only was he planning, he had his whole routine ready by now she figured yet there lurked some sort of admiration in her musing; he was free for what, two hours, and he was ready to make next step...

She threw him her own personal phone, either he liked it or not. No more courtesy from her. 'Use that one; it's untraceable.' His look said it all; "I doubt that" 'I hacked it!' she defended and at the same time explained herself as if that made everything right. 'I'm sort of a genius you know-…I had nothing better to do for the most part I was stuck in here...'

Oh; speaking of which... 'How long have I been here?'

'Seven years, two months and twelve days...not that I keep a track or anything though, that's aunt's work.'

_Imagine if she did keep track..._ 'How long will the rehabilitation take?'

Oh, he's thought this far...! 'It depends solely on you; I figure about a year, maybe a little less seeing how strong your flame was on the first place and the fact you woke up after all this time with the slightest chance...'

'Six months' stated he suddenly, after a small period of absolute silence 'any longer than that and you're dead.'

She paled. 'B-b-b-but I have no idea what other side effects you might have or in what state-?'

He threw her his glass, thankfully empty, but the stray shards still hit her when it shuttered; she covered herself, surprised once more.

_Is he crazy? Is he trying to kill me!_

'Wipe that look off your face and go fucking change.'

'But six months is-!'

Another signature stare and she was out of the room silenced in no time... before she left she stopped the air-conditioning though; it was too cold in there as it were.

_He is impossible! He is a nightmare! Why couldn't he be a bit more like I imagined him? He's sour and mean and violent-well, the first two are expected all things considered but he-he sat on me! Sat on me! To stop me squirming-he's so...bizarre! Certainly not active, too and what's with that fear-inducing stare? Gives me the creeps...OK; I have to think of a way to have him agree with burying my aunt. I need to hand her back to her family-her son...! Let's just hope mum and aunt Nicoletta won't be coming all the way from Spain for the funeral-or even better, I hope they bury her there._

_But then I wouldn't be able to go! Well, thinking about it, I doubt if he'd allow me to go to her funeral even if it was held but a metre away...ugh. This is frustrating. I'm crying again._

'Hey; I have no reception-where the hell were you, scum, keeping me?'

'Ah! What the-!'

She was scared out of her skin; couldn't he see she was changing-didn't he know she would be! He told her to! She was in her underwear!

'Didn't you hear me?'

She started panicking, looking for her blouse or a robe or anything! 'I'm dressing right now-go away, go away!'

'...the fuck I care?'

Honestly, such a fuss over a pair of underwear; she wasn't even naked. Plus, he'd seen much more and better than that...Besides, he was always welcomed differently by women in their underwear in the past, what was up with her? He kept staring annoyed for an answer.

'You are an insensitive bastard; you've been held down at the furthest end of the lab which is about forty metres underground. Now leave.'

He kept staring like she was the one who was intruding or saying unnecessary things until he eventually chose to leave, rolling his eyes.

She restrained herself from hurling something at him as he shut the door behind him -in case he actually saw or heard it and came back- but when she finally realized what had just happened she turned such a bright red and she could swear she felt her mouth foaming. But she concentrated on putting her designated jeans and red woman's shirt on because she never knew when he might come back because, oh, his eye was stinging.

She really wanted to smother him, she thought miffed and furious; in but a mere night he'd turned her whole simple and quiet life upside down, killing her aunt in the process -even if it was an accident-...she hoped someone would drive an icicle or just about anything though his gut right about now.

_So he wasn't listening after all..._wow. Where did that come from? Either he was or wasn't that had nothing to do with what he was currently doing which was messing everything up! Yet why did she feel the prick of disappointment as she made the, well, obvious realization? No! None of that now! She should get a grip!

She slapped herself.

=:=:=:=

'Yes?'

Squalo answered his phone as he pulled his automatic sword out of the gut of his latest victim. To think they could cross the Vongola without paying the price...but what was really important now was to understand who might be. This umber was the one he used only with one Varia member, his boss, and Xanxus was frozen and stacked somewhere where he certainly had no access to phones. So who...?

'What's with the guarded tone, scum?'

'. . .'

He should have known he shouldn't have called Squalo; what was the sudden sentimentality, calling him first anyway? It was that woman's fault. 'Given up on me already? You good for nothing fucking-!'

'VOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOI! Xanxus! You're awake!'

'Keep it down scum; no one knows.'

'Oh. Got it. What do you need me for?'

'Come to the place I'm calling you from; we'll talk then.'

'OK-!'

And the line was dead.

Heh, Squalo didn't even manage to say goodbye! He didn't even get to say welcome back...! Damn it! He couldn't believe Xanxus had awakened after all this time and he didn't even let him say how thrilled he was to hear him again! He only, one-sidedly like always, gave him orders and hanged up without even caring if he had a previous engagement.

'VOOOOOI! He didn't tell me where he is!'

=:=:=:=

She slapped herself as she entered the spacious living room Xanxus had himself situated in; the motion drew his attention but shook it off before finally telling her: 'Squalo is coming here; one of the few who will know I'm back for now. Make sure he doesn't wait at the door.'

Oh now he was having guests over, too as if this was his own house...she watched him lying further down, putting his feet on the table -_on our precious coffee table with his shoes on...! _- and making himself comfortable on the couch, closing his eyes. Of course, he wanted to sleep. But if he didn't want to die he'd better not sleep...but he didn't know that!

She panicked again, and ran to the man, taking the pillow from his back and threw it away. 'Sleep-you can't sleep, if you sleep you might as well-ugh, we have to do your check up-!' she was saying as she started fussing over him.

'I don't care.'

'Are you insane! If you go to sleep like that your heart might fail! Are you willing to take such a chance because you're tired or bored or anything?'

_So much yapping..._

Had he not been so eternally socked this...shrieking little thing in front of him -she was short anyway- was actually brave or stupid enough to shout at his face, he'd never let her speak to him with such audacity. Then again, he was quite tired-all he really wanted to do was sleep, that wasn't so bad right?

He gave her "the glare" to make her stop.

'Don't give me that look,' she said instead of cowering this once -_how did that happen,_ both of them wondered inwardly- and she even went on 'do you prefer being a tiny little bothered or sleeping the internal sleep? Due to the state you were in your heart beat slowed significantly and so did your blood pressure thus the feeling of tiredness and need of sleep! You can fall into a coma at any given time and you want to speed it up by sleeping! Just let me run some tests -!'

'I am not your fucking lab rat scum!'

He didn't even realize when he stood up and snatched her by the collar of her shirt, but there he was, glaring at the much startled woman.

Run tests, check up that was all that came out of her mouth; as if she hadn't ran enough of those while he was knocked out cold-literally. Freaking science geeks and their damn data and experiments! He was a person not a fucking thing! But being treated like one irritated him more than anything like how the excuse of a father he had had kept and raised him like a pet, without ever telling him the truth.

'I-I didn't mean it like that...if I don't run those tests I can't make sure you aren't dying...you don't want to die right? Especially after you held out for so long...'

Well, look at that; she actually cooled him down. He released her, she almost fell over, but his eyes kept following her; one questionable act and she'd be in for it.

She dusted herself down. Giving him a side glance, she shook her head. 'Honestly now, you're pretty spoiled! Let's get back to the lab-!'

'No; he'll be here shortly.'

'Oh I don't mind.' _Maybe you'll be less moody if someone from your past is here and you'll stop riding me_.

.

.

.

It was something short of a half an hour and all the while she'd been endlessly running around serving him-and he could be very demanding...

'Will you hurry the fuck up? My neck starts to hurt.'

'R-right away!' Francesca breathlessly ran to him with a pillow. 'Here it is, as you requested.' she said handing it to him-in truth holding it out in an elaborate attempt to be polite and catch her breath.

'You expect me to arrange it, scum?'

'S-sorry!'

Thank god she caught her breath for a moment; she rushed to fix the small couch pillow she stuffed behind his neck. But what the hell was wrong with him? Was he always acting like a spoiled princess? The only thing he did since he woke up was order her around to do this, do that, have her cook, wait on him like she was his maid! She was this close to snapping him whenever he gave her an order, yet every single time she'd stop out of seer fear. Blast his scary eyes!

The bell rang; and then violent rattling was heard at the door.

_**'VOOOOOOOOOOOI! Open the goddamn door!'**_

Francesca's eyes almost popped out of her skull as she heard him shout. 'I thought you told him to be stealthy!' she snapped alarmed.

'It's your fault; go open the fucking door.'

Suddenly she was very, very comfortable with the idea of bashing Xanxus' head. Too bad it would forever remain a fantasy, she thought as she tightened her fists...

'I already am you know...' she bit out instead but with such a voice, even herself didn't recognise it.

Everything about this situation was insufferable! And now this new person was shouting in the middle of the night! Were all Varia members clinically insane?

'VOOO-I. Hello; I am Superbia Squalo and you must be Francesca, Tutsi Lucretia's niece; where's your aunt?'

'A) my aunt is kinda rotting away in the most remote science lab we have in this facility, compliments of your over-demanding boss B) how the hell did you know all of these and C) what in earth possessed you to start shouting in the middle of the freaking night? You're supposed to come here se-cre-tly.'

Squalo kept looking at her, mildly shocked. Who did this crazy bad-tempered woman think she was, giving him such well-pointed orders? She almost reminded him of the one-sided way his boss does things...still, he didn't shout or scream at her seeing they were still outside and she had a point, even if the edges of his mouth twitched more than twice to answer her back. He merely moved in, immediately rushing to Xanxus.

'It's the other way...' he heard her saying tentatively.

He started getting pissed; he turned about and went the other way.

'So how did you know of this place? No one knows where we are-were-...I mean my aunt and I, who's dead and-ugh, you get what I mean.'

Someone was actually asking him how he did something? That was...incredible! No one ever cared for that before-especially not that heartless excuse for a boss he had. He felt so moved!

'...the number that called me, I ran it through the Vongola database -I have authorization of high level-' Squalo explained before she asks 'so I learnt it belonged to you, whose aunt is here with you, both working on a project for Nono. The project read classified so I figured you'd be somewhere near him and this is the only house with such proximity. When I saw the blueprints of the building, too I knew I was right. So here I am.'

They took a left turn and walked down the hall to the living room Xanxus rested in.

'Wow; and it took you only twenty minutes give or take? That's amazing!'

'Heh; you bet it is.'

She giggled. 'Right; but honestly, I never expected the Varia to have someone so smart!'

...oh no.

They'd just entered the living room and Xanxus could have easily heard her- 'Kyah~!' she screamed as she dodged whatever it was he threw at her this once -she stopped caring about the thing and concentrated on avoiding it after the fifth time-and actually hid herself behind Squalo. 'I didn't mean you aren't smart, I didn't I didn't!'

No matter how surprised he was to see his boss throwing stuff at random strangers, after all it wasn't like him to do that to everyone, he still felt uncomfortable. 'Whatever gives you the impression it's a good idea to hide behind me s-!'

'Help me...' she whimpered, completely ignoring him and grabbed on to his coat.

It wasn't easy for her after all; she was raised as a pampered albeit lonely girl who had everything she wanted but freedom. It was the perfect cage, yet a cage nonetheless that not only did it keep her from the outside world but also it protected her from it. And now the world was no longer at bay, but invaded her home.

'Look here, I have no obligation to-hey!' he saw an ash-stray zoom by him and grabbed the girl's head to take her out of its trajectory. 'Crazy boss! What's wrong with you?'

'You're in the way...'

'V-VOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOI! You haven't seen me for so long and you're throwing stuff at this brat?'

Xanxus stared for a split second, trying to make up his mind. 'Fine; have it your way.' he simply said, deciding Squalo's head was a much better target.

'Ah!' she breathed as she saw Squalo getting hit by one of Xanxus' new "weapons" -namely her houseware items-. _I can't believe this; no emotion? He doesn't care he's been reunited with his old team member or subordinate or whatever?_

'OUCH! Shitty boss! Why d'you throw that at me?'

'Why didn't you evade?'

'It'd hit the girl!'

'You're getting soft scum! And what's up with the hair? Cut it off!'

'No!' The girl protested before Squalo got the chance to.

When both men looked at her with a raised eyebrow, quite justified as well, she coloured and looked away as much as she could -she was still timidly hiding behind the long-haired man-. 'They are very beautiful and soft and odorous and long...it'd be...a waste...stop looking at me like that please!' she hid her face into Squalo's hair in an attempt to both protect them and herself.

Suddenly Xanxus broke out into a strong booming laugh. 'Ha ha; look Squalo, you've got a pet! Now you can call it anything you like!'

'It's "her"-call "her" and I do have a name, Francesca Tutsi and I'd like to be called that thank you very much!'

'Why d'you thank me? I won't comply...'

'UGH! You are a nightmare! You're a monster! And you're both weird because you haven't seen each other for so long yet all you do is fight...!' suddenly she got truly curious. 'Aren't you happy to see each other again?'

That was a fair question: had Squalo not been so casual with Xanxus and had he not gotten away with speaking like that to him, she'd think they didn't even like each other. But if "the boss" wasn't even bothered by Squalo's tone which showed such insolence then he definitely liked him...

'What's so good about seeing worthless scum like him?'

'Who'd be happy about seeing this boss anyway?'

'Then why was he the first person you called and why did you come over immediately?'

'He may be a shitty one but he's still my boss!'

Xanxus only shrugged uncaringly. She gaped by the surrealism of it all. 'Men are completely incapable of expressing their true feelings at such a degree, it's saddening!'

'Shut up!' Squalo snubbed.

'Sorry...' she mumbled, not wanting to argue with the sole person that was remotely on her side by defending her occasionally. Of course she realized Squalo had a bad case of short fuse but she needn't making it worse just yet...

'Humph! Damn right!' but then he grew serious. 'What's the plan boss?'

'What's my status to the outside world?'

'No one knows anything about the affair -it was called "cradle affair" by the way- other than the very few in charge and everyone still thinks you are the Varia boss residing within the castle and we of course reinforce that belief.'

'Good; then I shall make a formal appearance: that fucking old man will be hosting a party in a couple of days, as always at this time of year. I'll present myself there...'

'Ha ha; boss always had great ideas!' he says to the girl who had already stood beside the loud white-haired young man and nudged her -she felt her ribs crack by the force he applied-. 'And what do you propose we do there?'

'Nothing; we show up and make the old man sweat...'

They both smirked wickedly.

'But, um...shouldn't you have dates for that?'

She could almost see the light bulb almost light over their heads as both their expressions from wicked turned to surprised then smug and then wicked all over again.

'You have two invitations, don't you...?' Xanxus asked her.

She was almost backing up from the looks they were giving her. 'Err, yes?'

'Good; then you'll go with Squalo and I'll find a date for myself.'

'That sounds reasonable.' Squalo opined thoughtfully.

But she smirked; she had them now...! 'And what makes you think I have any intention to help you do something of the sort?' She would put a stop to their evil conniving plans and not enable them to hurt Nono. The thought made her smug, to know she had them where she wanted them seeing they couldn't kill her or make her agree.

Xanxus sighed. He was even feeling a bit generous with her a moment ago. 'Fine then; Squalo you should also look for another date-!'

'What did you say!' _My plan totally backfired!_ 'N-no way! No fucking way! This is my invitation to the ball, it is the party I've been promised to go since I was fifteen and it is my turn to get out of the house! I've been looking forward to this for the past month! There is no way I'm not coming with you!'

'...then we go back to my first proposal; do you enjoy making me repeat myself scum?'

She fumed.

As she was pacing up and down trying to calm herself they smirked behind her back; he knew this would be the key to make her come. While they were waiting for Squalo he'd asked her about the dress -not as politely and kindly as one would under any circumstances- and she told him about the dance. Well, he had no idea she'd be this touchy, but he did figure this was very important to her. And, as always, -and like Squalo pointed out- he always has the best ideas...

* * *

><p><strong>AN**: End~! Oh, I love Squalo; he is so...cute in a weird way! Hope you enjoyed and if you did leave a review~! Or message. Both work. :3


	3. Getting settled

**A/N**: So...I'm updating this. Should I? Should I not? Well, I posted this so I won't leave it to its fate. I'll keep trying!

**Beta'd** by Orihara Izaya

* * *

><p>'We have to leave here immediately and take her with us.'<p>

Squalo became a little worried by his boss's statement.

'...um, boss, with all due respect don't you think someone else will do? She's a personal researcher to the ninth like her aunt and you've already killed her. Can't you take any other woman?'

'I need her,' he poorly explained.

But Squalo looked paler yet. 'We can get you another woman; Nono will be very angry if he finds out you killed the aunt and seduced the ne-hey. Shitty boss, stop throwing things at me already!' he snapped as he evaded another object Xanxus carelessly chucked at him.

'Are you fucking stupid? Not for that. Explain girl.'

She cleared her throat, gaining more and more colour because of what Squalo had implied yet still miffed Xanxus disregarded the possibility so easily as if it was an offense to him-she wasn't that bad!

'Apart from Nono's personal researcher I'm also the only person alive who knows how to take care of him and help him with rehabilitation as we were the only two people who had any chance of examining him. And speaking of which, we have to go run those tests or you might as well drop dead now and find my aunt, too.

To the labs then; Squalo follow!'

'...'

As Xanxus actually started to move, she turned about and started, too. 'Oh' she turned to them again 'and if anyone dares to complain about the smell then I have you know there is a decaying dead body in there and _he_' she spat the word as she physically pointed at the boss 'wouldn't let me get her down.' she said like a petulant child and stomped away.

'The brat gets pretty convincing when angered...'

'...they have a word for that Squalo: pussy whipped.'

'H-how can you be so crass, stupid boss? Besides I ain't seeing you talking back either!' complained he, turning red.

'Shut up and follow, scum.'

'Yeah, when the argument doesn't suit you you're always "shut up" this and "shut up" that!'

The pillow landed on his head. '...'

'She's just bossy; we'll only have that looked at.'

* * *

><p>=:=:=:=<p>

* * *

><p>The three of them stood outside a large estate, a regular castle in her eyes, lost in the woods; it was also protected by the forest in case of an attack, making it the perfect place to hide. She was looking at it in awe; it was easily five times the size of the admittedly big manor she was previously residing in. If there was one thing the family didn't lack then apparently that would be resources.<p>

Suddenly she shivered; she had no desire to know where all this money came from...

'This is where you'll live from now on; you aren't allowed outside yet, you can't wander about without permission when you're out of a one hundred metre radius, and if you want something, you ask for it first. You'll be doing most of the chores and the cooking -boss said it was bearable so we'll give Lussuria a rest-' _why should I know who Lussuria is?_ '-and you can go on with your research in your own time.'

'So it'll be exactly like my old house only now I'll have to baby five grown men.' she stated somewhat dryly but as she spoke she was losing confidence.

But she wasn't amused. She was far from it. She'd hoped now she could at least have a relatively free kind of life style but they might turn out worse than her previous prison! Yet, she still received a smack upside the head.

She dared not ask from who it was.

'Six grown men; I'm included.' Squalo answered, sticking out his chest like a peacock...she pouted.

'Shut up scum; let's go inside. I hope you haven't wrecked the place while I was gone.'

'No; that's your job boss!'

But Xanxus had nothing in his hands to throw this once; how did he put up with Squalo anyway? Oh wait, he knew; he put up with Squalo because Squalo put up with him. Well, they did have a peculiar relationship, he always knew that, but the worst thing was that the girl was picking up on it. A fine example of that would be when they were helping her with her aunt...

.

.

.

'I warned you; the smell will be strong.' she said cautiously in a final attpempt to sound serious. But she knew-oh how did she bet they knew the scent of a dead body much better than her.

She took the final step and entered the half-destroyed lab where the young angry man was previously kept frozen; she turned the lights on.

But she didn't have to say anything twice: the smell that struck her was horrific! Ever since she turned the air-conditioning off the body's decomposing rate sped up! Adding to the overwhelming horror-scene feel, this whole picture had made her want to throw up anew, or at least run away...! But no; she had to take care of her aunt- get her down and preserve her body at least till Nono's guys came and checked up on them as they did every Friday at twelve o clock.

She took a deep breath, trying to get used to the nauseating stench and, holding her head high, she went to the body on the wall...

Her aunt was whiter than a sheet of paper; but she always had such a vibrant colour..._oh not this again!_ She wouldn't cry, she wouldn't cry, she wouldn't! Instead, she grabbed on to the icicle that held the impaled woman-but her hands were burnt! 'AH!' she recoiled, flailing her hands or blowing on them. 'Ow ow, ow, ow, ow; I'm such a fool! Gloves, gloves; safety first!'

She ran to the other side of the room, the side which wasn't that damaged, and from the few cupboards there, she took out not one but two pairs of gloves. She looked around to see where the other two were...

Both men covered their noses by habit; they had to get this over with and when both realized she wouldn't be indulging them or run the tests on him before her aunt was "secured" they went inside...and watched her going around, hurting and then cursing herself mightily amused, at least Xanxus was, and then she threw him a pair of gloves...why did she do that again?

'Help me please! I have to get her down to prepare her for when people will come to take her.'

'I told you we have to work on that.' Xanxus said pointedly to the white haired man but his tone indicated it was _Squalo's_ fault this woman was speaking out.

'Boss...?'

'Teach her her place, scum.'

The girl's resolution never to be scared again by the pair of them was wavering, as she listened to the boss speaking so absolutely, even if she didn't stop trying to release her aunt: she turned to the icicle, trying to make it come off but to no avail. It was too firm and heavy for her.

But in the blink of an eye, from his boss' side, the white haired man found himself at hers, his sword brandished and ready to strike; she didn't even have time to move to the side and escape the-...slash? Oh, it didn't hurt her! It didn't even hit her aunt! But she was sure it cut something clean off...just as she was musing, she saw the icicle cut right through and her aunt's body, sliding and falling, finally free of the icy prison.

Thrilled, she snatched the body before it hits the floor and placed it carefully on the ground. 'Thank you!' she exclaimed gleefully trying tackling him with a hug.

'That is not what I had in mind.'

Squalo grabbed her head before her arms reached him, but it still didn't seem to irresolute the girl who kept trying to put her arms around him; he flicked her back. 'It worked though, didn't it?' he replied shrugging as she finally stopped trying.

_What is it with these two men_, she thought vaguely feeling her pride damaged by the direct evade of her display of affection. She only wanted to thank him!

Blushing madly, she turned to the only thing she could count on to be knowledgeable -science- and made herself busy. 'I'll fetch some drugs from the other labs for the both of you and then we'll do your check up so take off your shirt and stand up there please' she said showing the platform-like machine and the remainder of the ice was 'and I'll be right back.'

And with that she was gone...as Xanxus did as he told her, surprisingly enough to his "familiar", he was intently glaring at him as if he'd done something horrible.

'When I said teach her her place I didn't mean help; I meant scare her.'

'Oh come on boss...she was already scared.'

'Then scare her more.'

'Tch! And have her crying somewhere near me? No way...besides since when do you pick on defencless women?'

'...what was that scum?'

Squalo could feel Xanxus anger radiating through his every pore...he gulped; he had no intention of standing up for the girl but she was only a victim to Xanxus' bad, bad mood. Had it been any other time he wouldn't be so mean. He should get himself back before he gets back on the streets and he never harmed those who were irrelevant to his plans unless they were in the way. She wasn't...

'Nothing more than concern for the Varia, stupid boss!'

'It better be...'

'I'm ba-...ahem. There's a lot of tension in here; who said the wrong thing?'

Xanxus threw her the gloves she'd previously thrown at him that got her straight on the face; she rubbed her nose.

'I see; I just did...'

Squalo laughed heartily...only to have an icicle thrown at him. He sobered as he dodged with incredible precision and finally straightened.

At least he didn't throw the icicle at her when he could have which meant that deep down he did keep himself from killing or at least harming her as she was sure, should he have she would never dodge it in time! That must have counted for something right? Plus he appeared to be somewhat "friendly" -as friendly as Xanxus could be- towards the man and it did appear like when they were arguing they were like brothers bickering.

Maybe she should give him the benefit of the doubt...

.

.

.

After that incident, how was it possible for the woman to fear him as a dangerous homicidal killer when these two were arguing like spinsters? He certainly felt he didn't command enough respect.

'So why do you want to go to the ball so badly?' asked Squalo out of the blue, making Francesca jump and colour in an instant.

'Um, you see I've never ever been to one before because one had to stay at home to watch Xanxus at all times thus I always played that part so my aunt can be with her son...and husband, too but who cares about that cheating bastard?' she was speaking rather timidly but then she lightened up completely: 'Also, this is my debut in the family, too! This is my first -formal or not- appearance so it has to be perfect!'

'This is a big deal for you...' he realized; secretly he felt bad for her and what she had to endure. Could she not even leave the house? Now that was just **sad**...but he decided it wasn't his place to judge.

As Xanxus was listening, he came up with a very interesting idea. 'Be happy girl; I changed my mind. I'll be your date for the evening.' Both of his listeners looked at him wide eyed. 'You need to make a spectacular entrance for your first time and I need to draw the attention of my dear father;' wow, much too sarcasm 'what better way to do that than show up with the debuting girl whose life my father had thought forfeit?'

'Indeed that will make an excellent entrance boss.'

No one was going to ask her?

'But I prefer-...' she lost her nerve when they both stared 'going with...' her hesitation became worse 'Squ...a..lo?' Xanxus looked at her piercingly. 'Um, I mean, **if** I could choose, which I can't and no one seems to care about my opinion anyway...'

'Tomorrow you'll go buy her a dress.' he snapped to Squalo who nodded affirmatively. 'And you'll go do whatever you women do to make yourself more presentable.'

She seethed; Squalo was distantly reminded of a cat that senses a threat or an enemy and its whole fur shakes and trembles in both defence and to scare the enemy away. Yet, the shock, hurt and shame was so evident it was painful to watch. 'What? I am...presentable! And I already have a dress...'

'The one you were wearing when I woke up?' He snorted. 'No way!'

She shadowed, losing all confidence. 'Wh-why not?'

'It's too discreet.' She stared with empty eyes. 'You need something to make people look at-'

_'Oh and here I thought **you'd** serve as that.'_ she interjected before her instinct of survival kicks in, her words dripping with sarcasm...but he continued anyway.

Few, she wouldn't be punished.

'-instead of your face;' what! 'and my date must be as dashing as I am and even though that is technically impossible for you' Ah! '-you have to look the best you can in return.'

'...F-fine.' oh the insults she had to swallow! 'But I'll certainly come shop-.'

'No way.' both Xanxus **and** Squalo said imperatively.

_Great, there goes the bit of help I was getting..._ 'Alright, but I at least want the dress to be either blue or green because they're my favourite-.'

Xanxus turned to Squalo, looking thoughtful. 'Red or black; preferably red. More intriguing.'

_What the-he is ignoring me on purpose!_ 'Um, I think I just said I want-!'

'Who cares?' he cut her off all too indelicately making her gawk out of mere shock.

Still, his way made it very clear to her should she argue anymore she would regret it. Thus she figured she should start shutting the hell up. After all, her aunt had warned her "dog that barks doesn't bite" and even though Squalo fitted into that category -somehow- she saw that Xanxus...didn't bark. Thus he'd certainly bite. And she was in no mood for that, no matter what it meant.

'Just get one that will be a head-turner with all the matching...stuff.'

'Yes boss.'

'Take a picture of her but leave the head out; no need to see her face to discern her size. What about shoe-size girl?'

'37 and a half...'

'There; now you have everything...so leave me alone. I want to go to sleep.'

'But where will my room be?'

She asked, sounding so desperate, he realized she was talking to him because he was already walking away.

'The fuck I care? Sleep on the fucking floor-pick one on your own! You can't do anything without being told? Tch, useless scum...'

. . .

In that moment, she felt stupid; he did have a point and even if she only asked because she thought he would have some sort of problem like always and he'd want to have a say in this, she should know that he only wanted to be left alone since he even told them so. She felt her cheeks burn red and looked, turned and started going away in an alarmingly fast pace for her standards, leaving no choice to Squalo but to go after her.

Eventually, he showed her the rooms and she decided on one just like Xanxus had implied and went to bed only after she made sure Squalo knew what sort of thing she liked or she didn't as far as dresses were concerned -she modelled some old dresses as well as the new one- and only then did she allow him to go to sleep. Not that it went down well with the young man -he kept shouting so badly, he had to be silenced by one of boss's threats who was too tired or bored to personally come there and most possibly throttle him. Maybe her, too for making him shout on the first place.-

She chose one of the rooms that was closest to the kitchen but was the furthest away from the rest of the Varia members' rooms-well, thankfully Squalo's room was somewhere along those lines so she was closer to him...but that only meant she could hear when Xanxus screamed for anything he wanted or anything he was disgruntled with. That sounded bad...

Thankfully the rest of them wouldn't be there for at least another couple of days so that would also be avoided...for now. Then again, if she got the baptism of fire with Squalo and most importantly _Xanxus_ how much more surreal could the others be? Given all the rumours she'd heard so far were true -at least about the Varia boss and the almost boss- then the rumours about the rest must be true for the most part, too. And they are not worse than those two's so...she could breathe with relief for now.

Of course, the next day she set her own rules, too: she was to follow Xaxnxus' crazy and over-demanding orders at any given time but she wouldn't be their maid for any kind of reason. Sure, she would clean her room and maybe do the laundry in general and cook for the lot of them but she would not clean anything else and she would not iron and she would not be their little servant! She would only do whatever the rest did as well. She actually requested it, as she needed time to work on her aunt's research...well, her research from now on seeing how her aunt has left this world. And she'd been working on it for the most part, too so she only had some catching up to do.

Aw, her aunt; Francesca had cleaned the body, stuffed it with all sorts of drugs to make her look pretty and presentable for her funeral, stopping the natural bloating that was to come after being dead for several hours and she even left a note on top of her carcass saying what had transpired in the way Xanxus ordered her.

But never mind that; she wasn't allowed to her aunt's funeral! She wasn't even permitted to watch the thing through security cameras-she had developed mean hacker skills. When locked up all day in a house with nothing else other than books and the internet as a link to the outside world, you make the most of it. And by doing so she learnt a handful of things: how to spell, write, recognize and treat erythromelalgia as well as how to break people's passwords and the like.

...the saddest part was that she was allowed to look over some footage of the funeral after the event; and she even saw her parents attending it, Lucretia's son crying his heart out and her cheating husband trying not to cry along with his son. And she was the only one missing...

.

They all thought she was either kidnapped or dead; that was the talk between Nono and his guardians when they found her aunt: that was the only thing Xanxus wanted and let the woman see, too. He wanted to see the expression of anguish on Nono's face -he'd said- and the agony and the fear in his eyes -he'd said- and the worry and the disappointment draining his colour when he'd find out the other woman of the house had been taken -he'd said-. Then, Francesca had the audacity to speak her mind -speak was too strong, she mumbled but the bastard heard it-. She'd said that she thought Xanxus only wanted to see the face of his father once again at least once before he made his appearance so he wouldn't be as surprised or at least as emotional as he was when he saw him again on the camera. He denied the whole notion...  
>Purely informational, but he broke the laptop's screen, the desktop's monitor and two sets of keyboards as well as the television while he almost fired his guns twice-the amount of times she ran for cover counted higher than ten. She was no expert but if you aksed her, that was pretty emotional.<p>

-Not to mention his reaction when she asked him about how in earth he intended to ba allowed to the party! He'd very colourfully said that Nono would never do anything as stupid as banning his presence; since none else other than the very high in the hierarchy knew of his special circumstance -aka his betrayal-, Nono would never do anything lik that. He wouldn't expect him to show up, granted, but he'd be ready just in case. Of course, she had counted three broken vases and five broken glasses till he finished -plus a very sore Squalo from the hitting whom behind she shamelessly hid- and the upside of a ruined dress she always hated. The dress of course was ruined when he splashed her with tequila and threw some of his food on her.

Of course she now also sported several little cuts and bruises, either from cleaning up everything that he broke or by the simple fact she'd fall into the radius of some shards -well, technically the other way round but who cared-. But everything was relatively fine given he hadn't really laid a hand on her...apart from a couple of times he grabbed her when she was examining him. But that didn't count because it was different. He didn't do it out of malice or anger but out of sheer "self-defence" in the lines of "if you dare touch me there your hand flies". She would have called him puritan had she not been so herself or so very ashamed he thought she was feeling him up.

She only tried to examine him, she swears! She would never touch a man like that especially one she didn't even know...!

Yet, she managed to survive and make it to Sunday, the day for Nono's party...

.

.

.

'Err...I don't feel so well about this; will I like the dress?'

'VOOOOOOOI! I chose it! And it's red! And they told me it's the best for a woman like you!'

He threw the boxes with the dress and the shoes on her bed and stomped away.

Oh shit; I offended him. I shouldn't have talked like-!

But before she manages to finish her mental self-rebuke, he came back with a smaller box which obviously contained jewellery. She stared. 'What's that look for? We want you to look your best next to the boss or else we wouldn't have bothered sending you to the spa on the first place.'

'Wow. So you bought me a-...' he took it out of the box; she was speechless 'red diamond necklace? That is hell expensive!' she exclaimed as she was inspecting it curiously. 'And beautiful...! Did you choose this, too?'

'...No; I showed the woman the dress and she picked it out.'

'Oh. Well, either way; thank you so much!' she attacked him with a hug for the second time ever since they met; she was never fond of jewels or the like but that was a sweet thing he did, trying to accommodate her and make it less painful. He was being kind of...like her older brother!

Surely Squalo was still very squeamish about having her randomly tackle him though, yet he was starting to cope: he'd find the perfect moment to grab her head before her arms wrapped around him.

He really didn't like it; maybe it had to do with the fact he was with Xanxus ever since he was a boy and he was definitely not caring. So he had this twisted idea people came close to you only to harm you in some way, so he still couldn't get used to being treated with gentleness.

'You're smashing, too by the way. You look very smart; did you choose this?'

He went from confused -was that a compliment, a real one intended for him- to furious in three seconds. 'VOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOI! What do you mean? It's mine, of course I chose it!'

'Well you look very pretty; and now if you just leave I too will get dressed.'

'OK; be ready in ten. I know the boss will be...'

She got the hint, and nodded; as soon as he left she immediately started undressing and redressing-...until she lay eyes upon the dress in the box she only just opened.

It wasn't that it was red, she knew it would be. She didn't mind it left one whole leg exposed, she loved her legs. She did mind though that the neckline was so deep one would think it was a freaking cliff! It was too deep! And after that the dress had no cloth on the sides both back and front for the half damn thing! It was too...showy! In fact, it showed everything! It was too much!

And she **had** to wear it...oh great! And now everyone would comment on the complete lack of boobs and how it was a slutty dress-a she hated and felt entirely horrible in and she wouldn't be able to move or else something that **shouldn't** _might_ be seen and-oh, he bought her a shawl, how nice of him.

Ugh, anyway she should get dressed or she'd be late. She didn't want that. _He_'d be pissed. And she certainly didn't want **that**.

'Oh final-...!' but suddenly, Squalo cackled 'I have to hand it to her-the woman at the store I mean. She was right: you have no boobs so the dress is perfect for you. No really, it's perfect.'

'Th-thanks Squalo, that's...sweet.' she managed, trying to sound genuine; she knew he meant no real harm, just to loosen her up a bit, but apparently he had no sense of how to do that. Or...

She didn't want to think about it coz it would be too depressing.

'What's sweet?'

Wow; Xanxus certainly knew how to make an entrance: he spoke assertively, drawing the two people's attention to himself all too smoothly. Leaning on the threshold, as he was dressed in all formality in a tuxedo, his hair were actually something other than a mess of spikes. She was even remotely-remotely attracted to him.

'That he just complimented my outfit.'

'And what did he say?'

She beamed. 'That I'm perfect for it!'

'He's lying.'

_What! Why is he-?_

'Now let's go.'

She glared but followed, even if she found it extremely hard to keep up. Considering she was wearing high heels and he still didn't oblige her by going any slower, she tried to reason with him -just as she had seen many other women do it with their husbands' or sons- without having any actual experience to it though. 'Um...we're already late so there is no reason to be in such a hurry...'

'I wanted us to be late but not too late; the essence of making a successful entrance...but I guess you can't know anything about that.'

'Wh-?'

'Just shut up and move.'

Squalo chuckled; that drew her attention. She would use anything that served as an excuse to not listen to this self-centred jackass. 'And what about your date Squalo; when will we see the lucky girl?'

Xanxus snorted at the absurdity of the statement. 'Lucky?'

'Shut up boss!'

'Shut up Xanxus!'

_What did they dare say...?_ Almost simultaneously, both people felt a strong tug on their heads...

.

.

'OUCH!' they both exclaimed and tried to turn around.

Xanxus had grabbed a hell lot of hair from both and was cruelly pulling them back.

'Ow, my hair-they'll be a mess;you sent me to the hair dressers' to fix them!' she complained fervently, almost tearing form the pain but he let go only of Squalo who had done the wise thing and shut the hell up until he was released.

'It's boss to you, too now brat.'

As he finally let go of her she shook her head resigned -and to put her hair back into place-; she just wouldn't figure his violence out. 'So what about your date?' she turned to Squalo trying to relieve the tension...of her roots.

'She'll be meeting me there.'

'Oh, great.'

They reached the car; she'd expected nothing else other than what she found: it was a beautiful, sports car -if the front was any indication-, coal black, polished and brand new. It had two doors and-...wait, two doors? How would all four of them go-?

'The woman will be sitting in the back; it has four seats.' Xanxus explained, one-sidedly as always.

What was with that "woman" thing? It sounded...weird.

Squalo opened his door and brought the seat down for her to get inside, helping her not to trip on her own dress. She really wasn't used to this sort of clothing and it was too obvious.

'Ah thanks.' She settled; it was surprisingly comfortable in there! 'What kind of car is this?'

Xanxus fixed the seat and got inside himself. 'It's a Maserati. When we arrive you'll be going out from the same door; you need the staff of the house to notice you-they gossip the best. And you'll wait for me to get you out; Squalo has his own date.'

'O...K?' how could he jump from subject to subject like that? And what was with the whole set up? He didn't have to be polite just for the typical, she didn't mind. He certainly wasn't being polite now...

'When we get there act as if you've known me for a while; I'd never taken a woman to a party if I didn't know her more than a month.'

He saw her nodding from the rear mirror so he started the car but went on.

'Be friendly; be pleasant-even though you'll have to try hard for that. Don't try to sulk or complain or there **will** be consequences. Don't mention your aunt's death unless someone asks you about it. A woman who knows when to keep her mouth shut has grace, try that for a change. All the loungers waiting there know this is your night if this is the first time you're presenting yourself to the family so act like it; be the centre of attention. Say anything you like. They all want, or at least they'll pretend they want, to hear what _you_ have to say. Be polite; you're a woman, you must be well-mannered. Do you best to be charming even if it'll definitely be a difficult task to you…'

Unconsciously, she felt sad; not because of something he did to her, after all she'd come to terms he'd always be a rude pig, but she remembered those women she was reading about and her aunt told her of, the feminists. It was sad to know that after almost two centuries of fighting for equality and the achievements they already had there were still men who thought -and spoke and acted- like Xanxus. Apparently he had no idea of the concept or if he did he was thoroughly ignoring it.

Yet, he deserved the benefit of the doubt, as far as his intentions -and nothing else- were concerned. He was only giving out orders for her benefit -even if it were eventually for his- and she actually found them quite helpful. She didn't look like it, nor did she have much time to think about it these last two days due to their hectic quality but she was very worried over what might happen.

What if the people hate her? What if she just doesn't know how to act? What if...? But he was actually being useful, she appreciated that.

'Are you spacing out brat? Pay attention!'

'S-sorry!'

He glared through the mirror but she looked way to eager to allow him to keep it up; it sort of gave him the creeps but he figured it was normal: one ever told her this and she had no experience.

'Be just like that, only make it look like it was done on purpose; _they_ should be interested in you, not the other way round. And of course, no matter what, be arrogant: you are in a party where most people know it is your moment to shine, you have the best date' she held herself from rolling her eyes because he was still glancing at her 'and the best outfit. Don't care about the others. They certainly won't care about _**you**_.'

That was a bit cruel of him to say...

When he saw the girl look at him in doubt he shook his head; if she thought those people there were kind and considerate she was much more naive than he'd ever thought. Well, she would find out about the true nature of gossip and a large group of people put together the hard way and not before long. He only hoped she'd cope with it just as well as she'd coped with his situation. And god forbids the faucets start running.

.

.

The rest of the ride, which was the most part, Xanxus didn't speak again...she did instead. And she would speak and speak and speak. And Squalo would answer her and they would go on and on-and Xanxus' head was about to burst with all the unnecessary information he was receiving in such a short ride! As if it wasn't enough he had to listen to her when he was in the ice, now he listened to her "live", too-...?

It was one of those secrets you keep only to yourself: _he could hear her_. Not only could he hear her in fact, he understood almost everything she was telling him. That was a sort of an additional punishment to him: he had to listen to the ravings, worries and the never ending **blah** of a teenage girl who was locked up in a house with none else to talk but him.

That was harsh. That was...inhuman!

But he'd heard her either he liked it or not. As a result, he definitely felt he knew her, at the very least. He didn't really like her...but he knew her. Thus, he couldn't help but feel close with her, like when a good friend has a sister and she has to be with you and you have to stand her. You don't like her, but you end up knowing her favourite colour because she wouldn't shut up about it!

One may wonder how the hell he could do all of those while frozen; then allow him to tell those who doubted no matter what modern science would say, the brain doesn't die when frozen. It's only...sedated. He did get dreams, he did get thoughts, he did get everything! And even if he listened to her in a state of haze, a dream-like situation, he did hear her. It took him the best part of a day to realize it ever since he heard her voice in person but he finally did...

And they arrived...finally the yapping stopped!

Squalo disappeared in seconds, as he had to go and pick up his own date, and Xanxus went to get Francesca...who didn't move until she saw him drawing closer. Interesting; she really was obedient.

'Come; be proud.' he whispered into the car seeing she was more jumpy than three seconds ago. Heh, so long she had someone to talk to she seemed to cool down. Considering he was her date that didn't sound promising...

She took the hand he offered -albeit surprised he really acted like a gentleman-, feet out first; he rolled his eyes. He could bet all he owned she had seen that in a movie. As if she'd know how to move otherwise...

She smiled to a couple of servants who looked at the pair of them astonished -she could swear they were staring at Xanxus rather than her though- and kept her head held high; Xanxus or her, she found it a positive sign that they were staring. It was attention they wanted so mission accomplished! She looked at him for confirmation...he looked like he didn't even see the servants. Wait, was she imagining it? Or was it really that insignificant...?

'Don't look so happy when someone notices you; they are supposed to. Besides, you don't care.'

'But I do...'

'...'

As he reverted to staring, she knew that was the turning point: from now on he'd be his old few-words self. Splendid! 'Right; I care not.'

When they reached the corridor which lead to the drawing room, he stopped her. She looked up wondered.

'The servants saw us...whom do you think will be the first to hear of the news?'

'Um...the butler?' she offered innocently; when he glared she chuckled. 'I was joking, it was a joke; I know since you've escaped they'd all be on edge and those who know will have made sure should anyone see you they'd immediately tell someone thus the first person they'd be alerting now would be your fath-...' she froze. 'I mean Nono, Nono they'd be alerting Nono.'

'Exactly.' The reprimand in his voice was somewhat toned down. 'So they shall be announcing us in a very...short...while. Now:'

* * *

><p><strong>AN**: End~! Do stick around and review or message if you like!


	4. Nono's party

Beta'd by **Orihara Izaya**

**A/N: **Here is chaper four! The boody ball is ending finally and next chapter more Varia craziness~!

* * *

><p>'They shall be announcing us in a very...short...while. Now:'<p>

Just as soon as Xanxus finished his sentence the doors seemed to open by his request; she remained awed looking at the double wooden doors open so he had to push her slightly to make her move. 'Oh!' she breathed and moved alongside him and into the room...

'-for them please.'

It was none other's than Nono's voice who welcomed them; the whole room broke out in applause as soon as they entered and cheers were heard from all the guests, young or old, as they drank from their glasses. Taken completely by surprise, Francesca almost took a step back -if Xanxus' hand wasn't there to stop her and push her forward again- but then she smiled triumphantly, just like he told her -_you don't care about them_- and walked inside with her head held high.

Nono looked so regal and calm, in her eyes. Xanxus had practically waltzed in there and instead of attacking and recapturing him, he welcomed him warmly instead. What a great man and leader he was; she aspired to be as great as him one day, even though she had no intention of being anyone's boss.

Immediately, and before anyone else gets to talk to them, his guardians surrounded them though and started the pleasantries. 'Wow; little Francesca is not so little anymore...! But you still haven't filled out too much at the front have you?'

She coloured but still turned her nose up; Xanxus tried to hold in a snort. 'I'm twenty one years old now. D'you think I'd still be vexed by such an insult...?' there was a brief spell of silence 'And they are not small, they're just not big, OK!'

'Ha ha; she still gets worked up over it. See?'

The older man with the mechanical arm shook his head. 'Yes Ganauche we do; how are you, dear?' he asked instead; might as well make her feel comfortable. He was old enough not to have the desire to pick on barely of age, ignorant and un-acclimated debuting girls.

'I'm fine sir' she said smiling bashfully; she couldn't help but remember her younger days and these men were like the family she never had-the uncles and the grandpas- 'this is kind of awkward though...I've never done this before.'

'Ah, don't worry; one smile here, one flaunting of the hair there and you've nothing to be nervous about. A beautiful young girl like you can charm them in no time...if you've even charmed the most difficult of them. Boss's son is just that.'

And with that, all the pleasantries were over; as if the switch was turned, the atmosphere all around the girl turned from warm and friendly to sub zero temperatures. She felt a chill piece her; she was in the cross fire. And the worst part was that this was her place exactly; that was why she'd come, well why she'd _really_ come. She only felt relieved because she knew neither side would try anything funny here...right?

'Hello Xanxus' Ganauche went on turning to the young man who was looking edgy -from excitement or resentment she couldn't really tell- 'long time no see; _where have you been_? Such a _waste_ you locked yourself up in the Varia headquarters. But I'm curious; how did you meet this lovely young woman anyway?'

'It was her leave and she decided to go to town because she was feeling too much like a convict in that house she was holed up in' both guardians bit their tongue to that, looking slightly away; they never did like that arrangement and neither did Nono but there was no other way 'and I happened to chance upon her when she visited a store to buy the dress she's wearing now. She was that excited to be out, she went ahead and bought it two months before the event.'

They bit their tongues again; even Francesca felt bad for-...no.

She didn't feel bad about that. If anything she enjoyed it, found it relieving they did feel bad-at least they weren't heartless. She could live with that. Wow, wait a second! Even if it was done for his own reasons, did he just defend her? To the guardians?

. . .

She should do something nice for him when they get back!

'And she picked **you** out of all people to be with on her day out?' Ganauche turned to Francesca looking reproachful. 'Not good enough taste little Francesca...'

'Don't call me that' she mumbled kind of embarrassed 'and my taste doesn't suffer at all, thank you very much.' she defended herself and her date; quite surprisingly she found it easier than she'd thought to stand up for him.

Well, it must have been equally surprising to the lot surrounding her because they all looked at her amazed. 'What? I'm just saying...'

Xanxus smirked. 'Well said...'

Visconti, the other old man, leaned in threateningly and scrutinized the young man. 'What did you do to her?' he bit out, more absolutely than Xanxus thought he'd speak.

But it was fairly fun this generation still had a fight in them; and he had no idea the research of this girl's aunt was so important that all of the guardians would go to such lengths to assure her safety...maybe he should ask more about it later.

'What are you, her chastity belt?'

_Don't blush, don't blush, don't blush...! Too late_.

'Besides, if anyone, you should be saying that to me. _**She**_ is not to my usual standards...'

OK; that nice thing she wanted to do for him? Consider it done and over with by sticking up for him a moment ago. It was much more than he deserved.

'My son Xanxus is arrogant as usual; don't listen to him my dear, you are much better than his usual standards.'

Was that really... 'Nono!' she exclaimed thrilled, seeing the old man coming from behind his guardians. She held herself back from hugging him. 'I-it's so good to see you again!'

'I could say that myself; I am relieved to see you again my dear child.' he said kindly to the young woman but in the end he looked at Xanxus. 'Both of you that is; I missed you.'

Xanxus must have known that, to him, he was dear; he should have known he loved him like the son he was and he was the one he was missing the most, not her. He loved Xanxus and his heart broke like his son's broke when he learnt the truth when he had to cast him in ice. But he'd killed many people; and he killed Francesca's aunt; and he kidnapped her. But Francesca was safe and sound -and she was looking much better than ever before, truth be told, both appearance and psychologically wise- and she seemed to be putting up with his spoilt brat of a son he raised...

Maybe there was no reason to take her from his side. If she were able to go on with her aunt's research from there then he'd both keep an eye on his rogue son and see the fruit of her labour. He could always make the best out of every situation after all that was why he was such a successful boss.

'I guess that's your fault old man.' Xanxus spat, trying his best to remain civil, trying not to resort to crass name-calling.

'Not as much as it was yours, too...' a man, not old not too young with a salamander tattoo on his cheek, said.

'And yours, too I'd think and all of you goddamn bastards who lied to me!'

'Technically...you are the bastard here.'

.

.

Seeing how this was going to play out if he stayed there any longer, she gulped; she could feel Xanxus' hand shaking and then starting to produce flame, as she felt the heat on her side. Oh no...

She took a deep breath; it distracted everyone enough not to snap one another. Then she snaked her arm around her boss's. She wore her brightest smile.

'Well, if you'll excuse us gentlemen, I was promised a tour around the room to meet all of the people he knows and even remotely respects! Come now Xanxus I really want to meet that man!'

She spoke so fast and whisked him away before anyone could protest and they'd find themselves at the other side of the room; they left behind a bunch of wondered male faces looking at her, following the pair prancing around. That was...weird! She manhandled him! And she still lived to tell the tale?

'What were you about to start? What if you started fighting? What if you killed any of the people in here? What would you-eep!'

Seeing she had conveniently grabbed him, he forcefully led her to a separate room from a way that wouldn't interest the prying eyes -as he knew this house inside and out- and made sure it was a dark one.

As soon as they were inside, he grabbed her with both hands and slammed her on the wall- 'AH-!'

He shut her mouth with his hand.

'Just because I pretend to put up with you it doesn't mean you can pull stuff like that, bitch. Try to do anything of the sort twice and I will make you pay one way or another. Get it?'

She nodded yes, her eyes lively.

'Now we'll go back out there, try to look happy.'

She nodded again, less vigorously.

When she did, he let her go; the look of fear in her eyes was enough to satisfy him for the moment. 'Tch; what the hell do you care if someone in here dies anyway?'

'...why wouldn't I?' it just seemed like a very sad thing someone to ask her. She almost felt sorry for him.

'Why would you?'

'I'm a doctor! And a philanthropist...'

'...what do I have to do next time to scare you? Take you with me, strap you to a chair and have you witness one of Varia's most high quality killings?'

She looked appalled. 'That is a horrible thing to say!'

'But I can still do it...'

She pouted, and stomped her foot on the ground, acting like a child. 'No! Now I know and I won't accept the offer!'

He looked at her as if she were an alien...and then he laughed; she was completely taken aback again. Why did he have to have such a creepy laugh and such an incomprehensible sense of humour?

'Err...I didn't mean to-, you know I only wanted-err, I mean I-'

'Do I look like I care?' he snapped, cutting her apology off, uncaringly as he tried to move outside.

She was left gaping after him;

'If you don't move I'll make you!'

She started. 'Oh. Right!'

He was jumpy; he was talking much more than he often did, at least these two days she knew him, and now he laughed out of the blue after he pinned her against a wall...it was the first time he got physical with her, as in actually grabbing her. Something changed. And what she could think of was the company; he was anxious about meeting with his father. He was worried how his father would welcome him. And last but not least, he was afraid he would finally reject him...

Aw, that was kind of cute of him. Maybe she should cut him some slack for today. -Well, that was what she wanted to believe anyway. The alternative seemed far too bleak.-

'Um, why don't I go find Squalo's date and you...go talk to people...huh?' He raised an eyebrow at her. 'I'll take that as permission and be off then!'

She hurried away before he could say anything; heh, smart move, if you asked him. He would never let her do as she wished could he help it.

.

.

.

Francesca was looking everywhere around the room to find the long white mane of Squalo's hair -it wasn't hard to spot him since he'd let his hair down after all; how many people, not just men, had such hair?- while she made sure Xanxus remained in her field of vision one way or another. Well, she was sure he would be doing the same thing in case he wanted to grab her again -hopefully not to terrorize her this once, she got enough scares for one night-but it didn't hurt to be careful.

She looked at her right- 'Ah Squalo, there you are!'

He turned, his date following his example.

'Oh it's Francesca Tutsi; you are the girl Nono just announced and talked to! I'm glad to meet you...'

Wow. That was the only word appropriate for his date. She was a tall woman with an amazing womanly figure, big red lips and gorgeous long brown hair done in some intricate way. Her dress was a very eye-catching baby blue dress while her hair decorated a matching in colour blue flower.

Maybe it had to do with the fact that she was locked up in a house alone with rare chances to get out and see other people, especially other women in such fine dresses. Only once or twice had she gone to something fancy in her life and that was a club but...

Wow.

Well, she didn't expect anything else from Squalo...

'Hello;' she said smiling; it was amazing someone talked to her 'what's your name?'

'I'm Silvana Conti, member of the Conti family of the Vongola familia. My father is a very important member of the attack force.'

Was it Francesca's idea or was this woman a little too happy of her title? But that threw her off track and became nervous again; she started feeling many people's eyes on her and even Silvana looked like some sort of opponent. Or worse, a judge.

'Err, that's great. And so are you!' _few, I saved it; are all gatherings so hard to be at?_ 'But, ha ha, I wouldn't expect anything less from Squalo.' she said in the end as she took courage when she saw Silvana smirk. She even went as far as patting his back...

'Ah, please don't say that; I was supposed to come with _Xanxus_.'

Now it was a different kind of surprise. Did she just say that to Squalo's face like that? What was she-a walking, talking rudeness? Not to mention she just accused her, too-of stealing her date. Well, if she could help it, she wouldn't be here with that man -where is he by the way? Oh, he's talking to Nono without the guardians. _Wait what! At least they don't seem to be about to attack each other_...that was good- but with the man Silvana was here.

She looked appalled, but the woman in front of her -barely twenty three years old- smirked instead of feeling worse. 'So do tell once again, why are you debuting? I heard nothing about you, other than your name and...I must say, I have never heard of it again.'

'That's because it's not my dad's last name but my aunt's.' she spat annoyed, making Silvana look at her funny. 'Originally I was Francesca de Luca but I changed it when I became an adult.'

'VOOO-I.' He shook his head and stopped shouting -she was sure Xanxus instructed him to not shout so much during gatherings of the like and she inwardly laughed at Xanxus amazing powers of persuasion-. 'Tutsi isn't your **real** last name-?'

'It sort of is...I legally changed it; it just wasn't my original...'

He could get crazy when people were picky about technicalities like that; he felt the veins on his temple snap. 'Why didn't you tell us before, brat? Do you have any idea-?'

But his date thoroughly ignored his righteous anger, and interrupted him -_not at all lady like_, thought Francesca-. 'You said de Luca-as in, the de Luca family in charge of the Spanish branch family there?'

Oh shit, was her last name well-known within the family? 'Um...yes?' she asked, suddenly highly awkward.

'Oh.'

Why was it a big deal anyway? Her parents were a bunch of peace-loving, tree-hugging (if they could help it) idiots and the only reason they were still in charge was because their ancestors were successful in running that place with an iron fist so now there was no need for violence. Almost all Mafioso there were from their family or, one way or another, they succumbed to Vongola influence but not _her_ family's influence. If anything, she felt her family was the disgrace of the mafia while she also felt she was the disgrace of her family because she believed **violence** _in a Mafioso group_ was more than necessary.

Plus, they had given her up like she were a puppy rather than a daughter...so she was still very sore about that, too and she knew she just had to change her name to the one person's who always took care of her: her aunt's.

Now why her aunt didn't keep the last name of her family? That was due to the fact her husband wanted her to take his last name -sexist, her aunt had said but she had no idea until much later what that was- but she did anyway thus she had a last name which wasn't recognizable in the mafia.

Still, it was enough to shut this highly unlikable (to Francesca) woman -she knew she must have been Xanxus' type of woman, ruthless and self interested, but she highly doubted she were Squalo's, too- so she didn't mind she mentioned it if it annoyed her so much.

Maybe now Silvana would stop looking at her with that superior "I'm-too-good-to-be-talking-to-you" kind of glare and she'd lower her perfect nose.

'I'll be going to get a drink with my girlfriends for a moment if you don't mind. I'll be right back dear,' she said somewhat seductive to Squalo while leaving 'Francesca...'

Francesca pouted again. 'She is a horrible woman.'

Squalo shrugged uncaringly 'she's good enough for these parties; I mean just look at her.' Francesca raised an eyebrow. 'Just look at her boobs.' Now she felt highly self-conscious, turning redder than her dress... 'And it ain't like I'll be marrying her -god forbids- she's boss's choice. Not that he will marry her ever of course but you know how it is.'

She was now on the verge of tears out of mere frustration. 'Well, he's a horrible boss.' She bit out, trying not to lash out on Squalo, too. How could they all be so insensitive about her anyway? She was a bloody-woman and it was more than obvious she had a problem with her chest-...! But she tried to relax, taking it out on Xanxus who wasn't even there to hear her. 'And this is a horrible party. So far I've only gotten frights.'

'Ha ha; Xanxus told you they wouldn't give a dam about you so don't sulk. Smile or else they'll have something more to gossip about. And don't call him a horrible boss, especially in public.'

'Oh shoot, right!' she said, suddenly panicky; she had no idea why, but it felt she was taking a test, like when her aunt told her she should find out what a compound was comprised of without doing anything else other than adding water to it. Xanxus' orders were absolute, too and he'd warned her if she didn't do as he instructed there would be consequences...

She shook the pout off her face and gave him a nice smile. 'Better?'

'Certainly an imp-...hey, she went to Xanxus!'

'Who?'

'Silvana-but **I'm** supposed to be her sexy date tonight. VOOOOOOI!'

He ran to the woman; wide eyed, Francesca ran after Squalo...she sighed, more disappointed than anything: after all, no matter what, he was still a man; if there was a skirt he'd run after it. Well, a beautiful skirt that is and she definitely qualified for that.

She felt self-conscious of her less womanly figure again.

.

.

'So old man, I see you're still hosting these meaningless parties.'

'To my memory, you rather enjoyed them when you were younger son.'

The mere sound of that word sent every fibre of his being in attack mode against the man in front of him. '_Don't ever call me that again_...Nono.' he bit out hateful; to have the audacity to call him like that to his face-an insult so direct, it made him want to hurt him. Still, he controlled himself. They all knew nothing so he should keep up with this act.

'Ah Xanxus, you never appreciated the finer things in life; you're all about power.'

'Is there any other reason for me to be?'

'...' Nono felt empty; how could a son of his ask him something like that? Had he taught him nothing? Had all of his pampering done that? He was disappointed not only in his son but also in himself. What had he done? 'I am truly sad you view your life in such a way, Xanxus. Your scope is far too narrow.'

'I need no bigger scope old man-this will be enough to bring you down; you and your useless generation.' He was holding himself back from lashing out; he shouldn't be seen attacking Nono or else they'd try to detain him and all hell would break loose. He didn't want that yet. 'Your stupid ideals will disappear along with you and I can assure you of one thing: as soon as you're gone, so will all of your so-called novelties. No one will dare oppose me...'

'A reign based on fear is an unsuccessful one Xanxus; I think I taught you that when you were but a child.'

'You're wrong; a reign based _solely_ on fear is unsuccessful; mine will be the best one. The Vongola has ever. Seen...'

'Hello Xanxus, Nono! How are you?' as soon as she arrived she took the young man's shoulder, smiling widely. 'Oh I see you're talking! Am I interrupting something?'

'Silvana...?' he unhanded himself; he had no intention of entertaining anyone tonight-how much more a spoiled daddy's girl like her. 'Aren't you here with Squalo? Why aren't you with him?'

'Xanxus, be polite to the young woman...' Nono reprimanded, yet light heartedly. After the small exchange they'd just had it was a good way to divert the conversation and maybe try to convince him on a few things. After all, he was still angry now; in two months though...? Unfortunately, his bad manners would forever remain with him; having the privilege to be born a beautiful man he always had an easy time finding women but that was also the reason he never thought of them as anything special. He was such an ungrateful child, on all accounts. 'Hello my dear; how is your father doing? Is he better?'

'Oh yes, it was only a stomach flu thankfully, the doctor said he will be out of bed in a couple of days.'

'Ah, that is wonder-!'

'Leave us woman; can't you see we were discussing something important?'

She sort of froze; Xanxus was always abrasive and cold-never showing any positive emotions unless they were in the strict and controlled environment of his bedroom but this was the first time he ever treated her so openly hostile. She felt her ego bruised.

_**'-OOOI!'**_

That voice...it was Squalo. Xanxus held himself from shaking his head.

'Silvana, where do you think you're going? Come with me now! You're supposed to be my date.'

Then, a head appeared from behind him; a familiar one. 'Yes, Silvana and you're quite rude-!'

'Why are _you_' he pointed at his date pissed 'with Squalo and why the hell aren't _you_ with him?' he finished glaring at Silvana.

Both women coloured.

'S-sorry...' they said simultaneously, looking down...and then at each other. They jumped, at the realization; they hadn't expected to react the exact same way.

'Tch, just go meet some important people and you-go back with Squalo, isn't he your date? Stupid women...'

They both nodded and left with their tails between their legs.

How could he be so inconsiderate? This was the first time she ever did this so she didn't know what to do...while Silvana really only wanted to see him. He had completely disappeared from the radar for eight years -and some of his other girlfriends would pretty much say the same thing- so it wasn't only her he was avoiding. He avoided everyone.

But she liked him; she longed to see him again. Why couldn't he see that? Why couldn't he be nice about it?

'I'm sorry I was mean to you; I'm just jealous...he was gone for such a long time and then he suddenly calls me to take me out! I was so happy...but then he says I should go with Squalo instead and he can't come with me so I figured he wouldn't be coming but then he shows up with you-...'

And she felt like the spare. Yeah, Francesca could see where this was going; she felt bad she wanted to apologize so she only shook her head. 'I understand; you like him.'

But Silvana's mind wandered. 'Hey, do you still want to meet all those important people...?'

'Yes...'

'I can introduce you to them.'

'You'd do that?'

'Oh sure; I have nothing better to do and I might as well be bitter to more people than just you.'

'Ha ha; I can live with that!'

The two women smiled at each other; they intertwined their arms and moved on, suddenly a friendly vibe coming from both...

Squalo was left behind for a short moment, almost staring yet a lot frightened; what was wrong with women nowadays? Not only did he feel invisible and utterly ignored by these two, he was crept the hell out by the sudden change of mood all around him from "hostile" to "confession room". That's what he got for being obedient...

.

'Don't you think you should be politer to women Xanxus? If you keep treating them this way, they'll all leave eventually; do you want to die childless and alone?'

'Oh please, they won't leave me...at least your pet scientist won't; she can't.'

He could see where this was going; his son wanted to make arrangements and his war declarations from now. Something in the lines of "my spoils is your scientist" and that was just the initial attack. When the fight would escalate so would his victims and his acts; he only hoped he hadn't had anything worse for the girl in mind. She truly wasn't lucky in life and she'd already been through enough for her age. She didn't need a crazy sociopath to complete her torture. 'What do you plan to do with Francesca?'

'Oh nothing really; I'll just keep her. You know, a doctor...A scientist. She'll be a great addition to our base of operations; give the Varia that little something it didn't have, right?'

'...yes.'

'And she's very handy all around; she cooks, she cleans, she keeps the house in order-at least now Lussuria isn't around...and she has the best solutions to frost bite. She's helping with that, too. We got ourselves a scientist and a maid all for free; Mammon will be happy we waste no money.' he completed his speech with a sadistic smile; it communicated to Nono the truthfulness of his words.

Frost bite apparently referred to him being in cryostasis, Nono wasn't a fool; so now he knew why he really took her with him. She would help him fight off any problems arising pertinent to him being an over-sized ice cube. _Not bad at all son; you are ingenious as ever_, he thought mildly surprised yet something close to fondness seeped out from him.

Yet, this was very complicated; he didn't want his son to cause problems again but just like the first time, he felt if Xanxus did something it was Nono's fault, as if he hadn't taught him well, he hadn't loved him well or hadn't paid enough attention when necessary. And now his son would probably cause uproar and another coup d'état just because of the way things ended last. But he still couldn't help but feel concerned for Francesca's living conditions...

'She has many gifts apparently; just make sure she doesn't tire herself out serving you. I am in need of her aunt's research and she is in a stage where she can finish it even on her own.'

Xanxus smirked; now was a good time to pressure as ever... 'As the boss wishes.' He said finally not before taking a good long look at the old man. 'She'll be delivered to you every Friday for her weekly report. Time will vary. Make sure your security is tight old man; who knows who will be bringing her...?'

And he left.

He had thought of everything and now it would be the perfect time to assert himself; he basically just threatened Nono that he should be on guard every Friday from now on when someone will be bringing the girl over he should be twice as careful. With a little bit of pressure and a bit of habit then finally his guard would be less high -say after a couple of months...or six; fucking rehabilitation- then he'd make his move.

After he took out all of the competition for the place of the tenth that is...and with that up his sleeve it would be an even easier choice.

He smirked; maybe now was the best time to just relax and celebrate: food, drinks, and women there in his disposal...the calm before the storm. And he would make sure it would be the biggest one they had ever seen.

...now where the hell did that woman go?

Conducting a quick search with his ever-sharp eyes, he found the three of them banded together, talking to some people -he would never say this out loud but he was thankful Squalo had grown his hair out so much because he spotted him first and then saw the women-: they were all speaking vigorously with each other, couldn't see him unless they turned around, and the people they were chatting up were some old and some young people in the immediate influence of Nono, Vongola, Chiavarone and Beccio family alike. He could see Dino was there, too...well, an older(and more serious)-looking Dino indeed that he now suspected was the boss of his family...but it was still him, he could recognize him.

He walked to them leisurely, watching how they interacted; Francesca was somewhat withdrawn, but she would listen and respond when she thought she had to, even if she had to stutter a little to do it. Her cheeks were almost the same red as her dress but she coped well, all things considered.

'I see you are doing as you're told.' he said literally cutting in the conversation, while he placed his hand discreetly enough around her waist. 'Hello gentlemen.' he saluted the people he didn't really know other than their names casually.

She felt horrible; on the downside he would always try to belittle her like that. On the upside if none then at least only Squalo and Dino heard him. She shook her head defeated.

'Hello Xanxus; long time no see. Where have you been this whole time? Eight years are a long period for someone to meditate.'

'Meditate? Heh, no.'

He laughed at the concept; he laughed at the thought this old man who asked him such a thing would mock him to his face like that. He was certain he knew why he was gone so no need to rub it in his face. The only thing missing from the occasion was the evil laugh from this guy and the cliché would be complete. 'But I guess you know what I've been doing, don't you?'

The old man smirked, showing he was indeed informed of the situation...Dino though looked suspicious -and Silvana looked suddenly interested-.

But when the old man saw he was actually expecting an answer -everyone was waiting for an answer that is- he only shrugged it off. 'Well...'

'That's what I thought...so. You became head of the family, haven't you?'

Francesca looked at Xanxus, trying to figure him out. His behaviour, his manners, his expressions, everything was being catalogued in the files of her mind, for future reference. And once she had enough information maybe she could finally understand what was going through his head. She had no idea why he was so hostile against his own father. She had no idea why he was so obsessed with making it to the tenth position so urgently! She should observe him some more...

Dino -blinking- smiled. 'Ah yes, I have only just become head though so I'm still new to the whole thing.'

Xanxus tried his best to smile too...only it came out as a very disturbing grin. Francesca gulped with difficulty, still being on his arm. 'Isn't that ironic? You don't know how to lead yet you are a leader while I, who knows, I'm denied the place...for now.'

The hurt and jealousy in his voice came out as mere hostility. Well, she only _hoped_ it was hurt and jealousy that which came out as hostility or else it was mere meanness and hate which she thought would be potentially very dangerous. Taking under consideration she was supposed to be living with him from two days ago without knowing when and _if_ she'd ever be freed...she really needed to find out what sort of things stirred him and in what way.

So she made another mental note to never mention young bosses of allied families who did well -like Dino- to him. At least not if she wanted him calm.

Dino seemed a little awkward yet gave his usual smile and tried to talk it off. 'Well, I'm sure Nono has his reasons for everything he does...'

Xanxus' lip twitched. 'Why don't we go talk to some other people now Francesca?' he asked, more civilly than Francesca expected him to speak.

_So he does have self control; he only applies it when completely necessary._

She rejoiced by the question though; he actually asked her what she wanted. 'Does that mean I have a choice?'

'No' her smile fell 'goodbye people.'

'G-goodbye...' she managed to blurt out before he dragged her away into the crowd, leaving behind them a bunch of taken aback people who kept staring blankly as they made their "exit"...

...and a very pissed Squalo who had to keep his date from following after them. Tch, the job wasn't paying enough for these stupid women issues he had to face.

* * *

><p>~End! Please review andor message! ^^


	5. Meeting the rest

Beta'd by **Orihara Izaya**

**A/N: **Chapter five, fresh out of the oven...! Many weeks ago. But I'm potsing it now. It's complicated. xD

* * *

><p>When Xanxus made sure they were away from any curious ears, he stood somewhere at the back, sipping on the drink he had just snagged for himself from a waiter who bypassed them on their way to that spot. Certainly, for looks sake, he'd snagged <em>two<em> drinks instead of one as he had to present her with something, too but he put no care in picking a drink she'd like. In fact, he didn't even know what she liked nor did he care to ask. So he took two champagne glasses. He was in the mood for something smoother than tequila.

_The waiter's reaction is the best_, Francesca thought amused; seeing Xanxus was still dragging her by the freaking arm around the room as if she were a rag doll -not that she could make him let her go even if she protested- it was easy for her to watch his movements...like when he spotted the waiter, changed his direction a tiny little bit to get in his course and then snatched up the two of the ten glasses.

As soon as it happened they were too far away from him to be able to understand the culprit; one minute he was holding ten, he blinked and then they were eight! The puzzled and slightly worried expression on the man's face -was he seeing things? Did he originally have eight but he'd thought they were ten? Did he merely drop them without realizing? That was when he check the ground around him- was priceless.

Xanxus was a bit fun to hang around at parties.

She giggled.

'Stop giggling.'

She looked at him wondered yet abashed. '_Kill joy_.' she mumbled a little annoyed and shot a dirty look.

Why couldn't he just let her have a little fun while he's being a jerk? For once he wasn't being one to her _personally_ and he had to ruin it?

.

.

He was only trying to enjoy the silence; his head was already spinning out of mere anger from meeting that pretentious bastard Dino who thought he was fit to become the boss while Xanxus wasn't. Yeah right! As if a pushover like _him_ could inspire any sort of strong people; nothing but weaklings that's who were under him and his family would go to shit before he knew it.

Heh, get a load of that; Dino claimed Nono knew best by not making him the boss; as if! He was the best possible candidate! Everyone knew that. He even had flames like the second's; some stupid people would not get in his way for that. He would kill every single one of them if he had to...how many were they anyway? They are three and they are all unworthy; he would defeat them in no time.

...he only needed to make the trembling in his hand stop before he did anything.

Damn it, why this now? It was because of the stupid ice and the ungodly slow rehabilitation. Two days and the tremors had barely stopped. **She**, Francesca, had warned him of this but he just hadn't cared because, really, it was her job to make them stop, not warn him they'd still be there.

Of course he couldn't blame her; he did that _yesterday_. And after he did, she promptly explained to him in every torturing scientific detail -_my punishment for asking_, he presumed- why she couldn't help it and why it was even a miracle he hadn't dropped unconscious and in a coma the first day he woke up. And since he gave her six months he shouldn't be taking it back as well as two days out of one hundred and eighty three weren't enough a sample to complain yet.

He then proceeded to scare and threaten the shit out of her to which she whimpered and almost ran away but the sad thing was he had actually understood what she was saying; how couldn't he, he was a genius man after all?

So he distracted himself; and that tattoo decorating most of the right part of her back served just as that. 'What's this tattoo anyway?'

'Sorry?'

'Are you fucking deaf? The tattoo on your back, what is it?'

'Eh...? Oh right! Ha-ha, I'd completely forgotten about it, it's been such a long time since I had it and no one else besides aunt has seen it; it was a gift from-!'

'Do I look like I care who let you out of your basement to have it? I asked what it is.'

Her mouth hung for a moment; he was the most insensitive annoying man she ever had the misfortune to meet!

'They are vines from climbing roses; one vine for every year before I came to that house and one thorn for every year in it.' She spat but the more she spoke the more she calmed down. _Bastard boss and his stupid abrupt ways._ 'I had the last thorn added two months ago and now it's pretty even: eleven-eleven. Isn't it nice?'

'...No. It isn't. It's a disgrace for tattoos. But what can one expect from a girl who lived most of her life in a lab? Sun light is necessary for brain growth but apparently you missed it.'

She gawked again. 'Wh...what?'

'Shut-!'

But he stopped.

She then looked at him worried as much as quizzical.

Slowly, he started making small coughing noises and, as his eyes grew wide by his own shock, he had to let his glass down and cover his mouth with his hands and he started coughing more, albeit discreetly. He wouldn't want any attention drawn to himself because he was oh so weak and fragile.

When he stopped his little fit, he saw there was blood on his hands...while said hands were still shaking.

Francesca breathed in sharply; she knew what this meant. 'We have to go; your medicine...'

'...' he said nothing, he only stared furious; yet she could see the fear in his eyes: fear for his self and image.

He didn't want to appear weak to any of these people, while he also had no intention of dying or anything of the sort. And if what Francesca had said was true then this might have set him two days back in his rehabilitation. He hated that thought more than anything, more than he hated Nono...so he chose to leave. At least he was still able to walk with his head held high and if he held Francesca no one would notice the tremor of his hands that now was even more serious.

But she noticed; she felt it on her back as his hand touched her and urged her forward. 'We're leaving; if you don't want to sleep on the porch tonight, keep up a smile.'

She smiled so widely one would thing she was demented; but she didn't care. She only really didn't want to sleep on the porch; she knew he would never go back to such a sadistic threat...she had started feeling sorry for herself already, seeing what was in store for her. Maybe she should just let him die! There was always Squalo for the Varia...

And speaking of which...

'Where **is** Squalo?' she asked genially curious; they came together, wouldn't they be leaving like that, too?

He gave her a mean look.

'I mean won't we call for him to come with? He has no other mean of transport to the mansion...'

'He won't be coming with us.' he finally said after a lot of staring that the woman in front of him didn't really seem to understand what it meant. Before she asks anything stupid as "why" though, he explained -seeing she was about to do it anyway- 'he'll be accompanying Silvana home, scum.'

'Oh!' she exclaimed jubilant she finally understood...but then her jubilance fast turned into concern or whatnot, as the edges of her face fell downward. 'B-but I um, I mean, I don't mean to pry but I thought Silvana wouldn't...with him and...Isn't she in love with you?'

'. . .' he stared at her confused. He couldn't see the point or where this conversation was leading.

'Well, she's in love with _you_, not Squalo.'

'Of course; I'm much better than him and much better-looking. Why _wouldn't_ she be in love with me?'

She resisted the urge to facepalm; what self confidence this man had, she envied it. Especially since it was so misplaced...if it were her she'd choose Squalo ten times out of five!

She shook the thought away -mainly because she felt he could read her mind with his penetrating glare. And then, an image of him grabbing her head and bashing it on a wall flashed by her eyes for a brief moment- and continued with what she wanted to say. 'If she's in love with you then how come she's going home with...another man?'

He vaguely wondered if she could truly be so...innocent and naive in lack of better words. Well, he would say stupid, but this is more on the romantic side and he knew how women got when things reached there so he only raised an eyebrow.

'I mean, don't you find it strange?'

She wanted to believe it: Silvana wasn't a woman who would have sex with someone as long as he was good-looking and she knew him; she started liking her and she didn't know if she could like that sort of person. Also, she wanted to believe Squalo wasn't just another guy who wouldn't care who that other person was so long he got laid.

Maybe it had to do with the fact she viewed him like an older brother already or she was reading too many love stories...or both. But she knew she didn't like the idea. And she was so sure she was actually right!

'**No**.'

Her dreams crashed.

'Tch, fucking girls and their fucking fantasies...'

Scratch that: Silvana **was** like that. Squalo could get really, really, _really_ thick and be just another guy. And Xanxus deserved to die, head bashing or not. Now she knew and she had no regrets...for any bad _thoughts_ she would get-it wasn't like she could actually do anything.

Heh, if she only accepted the situation then she'd deal with it easier. So it's better to assume the worst when it is the worst than expect something better that never came: her parents would never change their mind about giving her away, Nono would never have a change of heart and let her go, Xanxus would never be nice to her and _Squalo would never let her comb his hair_. **Ever**.

She didn't know what hurt the most though; she really wanted to touch those soft-looking strands of white and make them into a beautiful long braid...but that wish had to die along with the rest. It was a cruel, cruel world she was living in.

.

.

.

Next morning, the first she did when she woke up was to check Squalo's bedroom. Empty. Heh! He stayed out all night...

_Tch, men! Always running after a skirt..._

Then she ran to the little place they gave her as a lab and mix up the new medicine for the boss; he had given him some yesterday but she had to minister some today as well if she wanted to catch up to the small progress she'd made. He was rather resilient though, she had the opportunity to notice all over again -her aunt used to say it all the time but then she had no idea what it meant- so there was no risk of relapsing to his previous state.

Yet, she rushed to her "lab" and readied the cocktails; a dangerous mixture of medicine he was prescribed but it was ideal for his case...and his flame. His flame was what kept saving him every time; she only felt glad and thankful to God that the only time she saw it up close was when she requested so for his check up, to make sure everything was well. Did that mean he was in fact controlling himself, holding back his anger?

She sincerely hoped so...

She then proceeded to the kitchen; given she was making all the meals for the past two days she had relocated almost everything in there. She felt sorry for the man called Lussuria who was previously in charge but she just couldn't handle regulate messes. She wanted everything neat and clean. She vaguely wondered what he would look like and when she'd finally meet him...

She made breakfast for herself and Squalo; she had no idea when he'd be coming back but he figured it would be soon enough. After all it was nine o'clock already.

She didn't make breakfast for the boss though; if her calculations were correct then all parameters taken under consideration -the amount of medicine he'd consumed yesterday, the amount of sleep he usually gets and the fact he would definitely be the type to oversleep if he could help it-, he wouldn't be waking up earlier than twelve. And he did need his rest...

Just as she was contemplating on the odds of the boss waking up early and maybe letting her go back to her family -how these two were related it didn't matter- she heard the door creaking...it was being opened. It must have been Squalo!

...hold on; if he could always be this silent then why did he have to shout-

'VOOOOOOOI! I'm back!' he shouted as soon as he saw her there. Still, there was a tinge of arrogance in his voice and his poise, one slightly different from usual.

Had he been reading her bloody mind, he would never manage such great timing, really.

'I hear that...' she said, pretending he had deafened her, completely ignoring the underlying tone. 'Here, I prepared breakfast for you...you are hungry right?'

'Oh yes!' he exclaimed and dag in.

He literally wolfed every little edible thing she was giving him; he had a great appetite for sure.

'...been up till late, have you?'

'Heh he; yes!' he sniggered at some fun memory -_that he made last night_, she easily saw- and then continued with his devouring everything she threw his way.

She was perfectly certain he was a pig: had he given him a human arm to eat, he would never know the difference, he'd only swallow it along with the rest.

'So I see you had loads of fun yesterday night...' she continued as she wiggled her eyebrows, trying to make a conversation with the apparently famished man. Had she not been preparing his meals, she'd say he hadn't eaten for a week! She chuckled though; he was so easily satisfied: a woman, a meal and nothing else!

He caught the motion of her eyebrows though and beamed, 'You bet I did; if me catching no sleep is any indication, too.'

'Oh!' she was surprised by his innuendo but then she giggled. 'You shark!'

He enjoyed the praise and she could see he did by the proud look in his eyes while drinking some milk. 'So will you be seeing her again?'

'Oh, I don't think so-at least not any time soon; I need to catch some sleep tonight and then tomorrow I'll have to go on a new mission.' _I knew it..._thought Francesca, pouting. 'I'll be gone for a little while. And tomorrow most possibly the rest of the Varia will be returning, too-that or the day after.'

'Oh right, the rest of you; I'd forgotten!'

'Wrong; it's the rest of "us" now, if the boss told you to call him boss. I just don't know how many languages you know.'

'...languages? How is that relevant? But I know a few: other than Italian and Spanish that are like my first languages I also know Portuguese, Greek and French; all Mediterranean ones. Why?'

'You have to know at least seven languages to join us. Hum...' he looked thoughtful as he started eating much slower. 'You can learn Japanese and Indian; variety is never underrated.'

'Oh. O...K? Should I start reading books?'

'Yes. Now is there anything else to eat? Something sweet?'

=:=:=:=

Never did she expect that anyone would sleep in so late, especially a man who is supposed to be leading a small army of assassins who were deadlier than the plague during the fourteenth century.

Yet, there she was watching as Xanxus, her boss now too, was snoring, lying on his back. How could one person produce so much sound when asleep and close to no sound when awake it would forever remain a mystery to her.  
>She only knew she should check his nasal cavity. But that would be for future reference; now she had to wake him up.<p>

Crouching next to the man, she rolled up her sleeves, careful not to drop the needle in her hand or accidentally stomp those next to her.

'Boss, wake up; boss...You must take your medicine; it's two o'clock already.'

He rolled on his side; she felt her temper rising.

'Boss, you must wake! You are in no position to be sleeping in so late.'

He rolled on his other side now. The good part was that now she could see his face; the bad part was that she saw he was starting to wake and he was not in the least happy about it.

_Oh no..._

'B-boss, your shots...'

'Goddamn it, shut the hell up!'

He sprang out of bed so abruptly, not only was she scared enough to lose her footing, she ended up _dropping_ the needle and landing right on top of-...wrong. It ended up directly onto his arm, puncturing it. Both people's eyes travelled, following the needle's route inseparably...

_Oh fu-!_

'**Kyah**!'

.

He was being awakened from his peaceful sleep to talk about shots and medicine? Did this woman have a frigging death wish! She shouldn't be so surprised he grabbed the needle and hit her with it! Although...he had no idea what was in it. Hum...that could be potentially problematic. But hell, he shouldn't care for such details.

'I-I have to, ah, ah, ah...you just...you shouldn't have-ah, ah, ah...a knife, I need a knife-I!'

She started hyperventilating; she could feel her quickened heartbeat echo in her ears, her head was buzzing-the whole world was spinning around her even though she was certain she was perfectly still. She was dizzy and she felt so hot, she thought she was on fire.

She then knew she was experiencing paroxysmal hypertension combined with tachycardia thus sympathetic hyperactivity of the nervous system and a case of autonomic dysreflexia or hyperreflexia.

In other words, she was in deep shit.

Desperately fumbling around her for the rest of the shots she had brought with her, she realized with dread they were all now just a smudge on the very expensive carpet -...which something told her she'd be cleaning up if she made it out of this alive; suddenly she just wanted to die-. She had no medicinal way to counter this attack now...but she knew an incision would help; she-...only needed someone to...cut her deep enough to release, release enough b-b-blood to justify such...i-i-intense heart rate and-...

She was slipping out of consciousness; no wonder she couldn't gather her thoughts...yet the only one who could help, she saw to the best of her current ability, had turned the other way, vexed and annoyed. He had no intention of helping...she'd die on his carpet because he was a bad-tempered and selfish _spoiled brat_!

Heh...maybe she should die; that way she wouldn't have to take care of him, the ungrateful bastard. Maybe he would even die shortly after, too-serves him right after all this.

'Shut up...'

What's he talking about? She wasn't speaking...was she?

'Tch! One can't fucking sleep around here, can they...?'

She vaguely heard Xanxus' voice speak to her angrily...and then a sharp pain under her ribs; and she finally felt relieved...

Colours started swirling around her and blending in with one another; colours she didn't even know they existed, danced all around her in a crazy funky tune she remembered her aunt used to hum when she was excited. Then, the colours started taking shape: they looked like overblown stick figures of aunt Lucretia and her husband and son; they started singing children songs and dance around a merry-go-round...

But a blunt voice cut through her dreams:

'**Food**.' It ordered imperatively, making her pry her eyes open but a little to see who was so shamelessly interrupting her little fantasy with the bright vivid colours.

'Mmmm...'

Someone's foot, she assumed the same person's who was trying to wake her up from her crazy dream, jabbed her on the arm. 'I said I want food; get up and go cook.'

She must have assumed correctly because the probing boot that urged her to stand seemed to be in perfect synchronism with his words.

'Get up, come on.'

'Mmmm...Stop shouting...'

'VO-VOOOOOOOOI! I was not shouting. But I am **now**! Get your ass off the goddamn couch and go cook something edible.'

She blinked; she was still alive! And her heart rate was now normal! Wait, what couch was he talking about? She had fainted on the floor of Xanxus' room. Was she carried here? By _**him**_!

She decided now wasn't the time to be curious but actually do as she was asked: no matter how much she liked or preferred dealing with Squalo over Xanxus because he was easier to get along with, she still knew he was a killer...and a short-fused one.

'Sure...'

She agreed; could she help it anyway? While rolling out of the couch -to which she felt a stab of pain to her chest- she gave her answer to the long haired man who was watching her move about quite self-complacently.

Might as well just cook him and their crazy boss their lunch-dinner whatever it was. Brining that up, when was this? How long had she been out? She should check!

On her way to the part of the house she mostly used, the kitchen to her horrid aftermath, she calculated she was unconscious either for six hours or for X-days and six hours; judging by the urgent tone and the comment Squalo made as soon as she opened her eyes, she deduced it was the same day. There was no way they lived with no food for more than some hours and they were clearly not the type to consume fast food. No, she was certain of it: on her first day she'd suggested they order some pizza and she ended up five hours in the kitchen making one.

Of course, that was after she had made them snacks just as soon as she had woken up, taken care of Xanxus, mixed up the correct cocktail of drugs for him and making it into phases -in the remote case she wasn't around and someone else had to administer them to him- and then cleaning up her room and finding a place to call a lab. And then do the laundry. And then fix the computers and hack some others. And last but not least, clean up the whole mess her new boss had left behind namely a lot of broken stuff.

She swore no more being taken advantage of by anyone.

She made up her mind, setting her jaw straight as her hand made the way to the switch of the kitchen-...

Oh GOD! What is this terrible state the kitchen is in? Fragments of glasses and plates were imbedded into the rotting -and horrible smelling- pieces of food on the floor or the counters or the _**walls**_...How does one get food on the wall anyway! Do they purposefully throw it there or do they let something that was previously boiling explode? And all the dirty frying pans, pots and plates -those that hadn't been broken-...

How the hell was she supposed to cook in this mess? How was she supposed to make a meal in the designated time -she figured about half an hour, one at most- if she had to clean up first? Ugh!

.

.

Squalo had just finished a very refreshing bath, a bath he needed but failed to get hours ago due to special circumstances -in other words, Xanxus-, and he was heading to his room in a particularly good mood. He was clean. He had spent a great night, he had eaten a filling breakfast and an equally filling dinner and now he was going to get some rest.

Almost whistling, he headed to his room with the towel still protecting his most sensitive and admittedly long hair; ah yes, his hair: soft, beautiful, shiny. In order to achieve such an excellent result they needed a lot of care and naturally, a lot of peace. Peace of the sort that was now-

'**You will fucking do as I fucking tell you; so clean up the fucking carpet! And if I catch you in any kind of bed tonight you're dead meat**!'

His boss' sudden screech gave him such a fright, the towel fell from his head…what was up with him ever since he came back? He didn't have to be such a full-time prick! At this rate his hair would sooner fall off than grow any longer.

Yet, he couldn't help but notice the absolute silence that followed his statement. That was as odd as it was worrisome. Even for the certain timid girl, this was too much of a good response: she'd normally try to talk back and get herself scolded even more. So why was there no sound…?

He poked his head outside the room, slowly-slowly, in a final effort to catch any sounds he might have missed from the inside or maybe a glimpse of her as she was, well, anything: flang out the door, thrown outside the window…

He waited.

'Wuaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!'

He did get a glimpse of her: the young meal-maker was running away from Xanxus' bedroom wailing at her new punishment, while her burried in her hands face was downcast and probable wet. But not solely from the tears running down her cheeks so freely one thought there might be a faucet there -how could she cry like that and so easily anyway?-, but from whatever it was that had also soaked her clothes and hair.

Now he would never get a normal night's sleep. Did he really have to take her with him? What a pain…!

.

.

She was running…a cool summer breeze was stroking her face and her bare arms gently, as she coarsed through the sun-kissed field; such beautifly colours all around her and such marvelous nature. The sun was already high in the sky and the blue sky above her sparkled with refreshness; the sun wasn't blinding though. It was midda, but the beautiful clearing, surrounded by mountains as it was, it was overcast by a great shadow providing shelter to its visitor.

And suddenly, blood: everywhere around her, on her face, her clothes, the flowers…and the sun was gone. Now the huge friendly shadow turned into an unwelcoming one, a storm, chasing her out of the peaceful clearing faster than she could run.

The shadow was suddenly too close not to be threatening; before long, it was swallowing her up, it was swallowing her whole! She couldn't escape anymore. The only option was to give up and give in…

From within the shadows, a face emerged; it was a familiar one, she had seen it before. The glaring eyes were its most striking feature: cold, angry and still eyes, pinning her down making her feel useless. Marks like scars decorating the face, and there was an unpleasant smirk adorning the lips of the man in question. A haunting simper, coming closer and closer to her bloodstained self…

She woke with a start; that was a most breathtaking dream and not in a good way but in the way you get the breath knocked out of your lungs just for daring to dream something which she knew wasn't real yet felt so anyway. That horrible frightening grin-

'**KYAH**!'

She felt herself jumping out of her own skin quite literally: as she looked at her right and removed the arm covering her eyes, she gazed upon a horrific thing to behold. That crazy grin from her dream…it was there in her face as its owner -whoever that horrendous person was- was looking down upon her, presumably.

Without a moment's doubt or hesitation, she holed herself under the blanket that was keeping her warm all night, in hopes of -maybe- also keeping her safe.

'It's real…it's real…Th-that simper, th-th-that sinister simper…'

And then…her blood froze. That predator was pulling on her protective item, she would be exposed and then:

'Whose is this thing?' was the thing her? 'Squalo's maybe?'

The four men looked at one another with the same question written all over their faces; as she pried one eye open she saw they weren't trying to kill her or cut her open with machetes or butcher knives, but they were four different-looking certainly but generally harmless-looking individuals.

Yet, they all had something special about them: the one with the scary grin, which appeared to be a trademark of sorts, was also the youngest while his hair was covering his eyes completely. How the hell could he see?

The other was a tall man with sun glasses and a funky haircut, coloured in an equally funky colour.

The other was a…oh, it was a baby! She'd taken him for a midget but now she could see it was a small elaborately-dressed baby…what was a baby doing in such a place?

And the last was…wow. She didn't want to go there; what to comment on first? The ridiculous moustache coupled with the ridiculous matching hair or the exceedingly dumb look on his face? Yet there was something there in his eyes that made her feel sorry for him…she didn't know what though. Maybe the over-all patheticness made her fell as such.

'Wh-who are you, people?' finally Francesca mustered up the courage to ask even if she was still trying to hold on to her blanket for a false sense of security.

'Oh? The lady woke up and first thing she does is ask questions left and right? Shi-shi-shi; not very polite for a woman, are you? You don't mind if I play with you a little right?' he asked but he was already going for what it was that he needed.

'Ah-huh; we don't play around with a woman's heart Bel-chan! We women are quite sensitive!'

_**We**__ women_? And that man had such a weird voice…and feathetrs. He had **feathers**.

'Shut up tranny! I want to scare her, come on!'

'We don't know what you can or can't do to this woman; what if the boss's orders are different? We need to ask him first! Besides, Lussuria is right. You shouldn't play with a woman's heart.'

'But that means waiiting around till he wakes up!'

'Yes, it does.'

'But that could be hours! If I torture her a little now, she'll be fine until the boss wakes up!'

Ah! That young man wanted to torture her? _Why would a person do that! Is he insane...? Hell, this is the Varia, why does this come as a surprise?_

'Bel, learn to control yourself.'

'No one cares what you think Levi!'

'How much will you pay me to say nothing to the boss and look the other way? I'll give you a discount for both: only 20% up!'

_Eh? The baby can talk? And not only talk but also request a bargain?_

'Ara…that's not a discount, Mammon-chan!'

'It is; normally it would be a 50% more.'

'Oi, you bastard, you are expensive either way!'

'Would you please stop thinking about it anyway? Even if Mammon doesn't say anything, I will.'

'…my, my; what a gentleman we have here…'

'So can I torture her or not?'

Of course; now she remembers. The young one holding a knife in his hands, preparing to cut her in some gruesome way he'd think of, the small one looking like a baby but being more vicious than a banker, the she-man and the…fourth guy. They were the-

'...rest of the Varia…you're-um, I mean, ahem' she coughed to draw everyone's attention 'you're the rest of the Varia team, aren't you?'

. . .

But no one paid any mind of her, they only kept bickering. She felt her veins popping out of her temple. So now they would ignore her huh? They were bickering about **her** though!

'I said you're the rest of the Varia team!'

'This is not football you moron, this is killiing; we are a squad, an assassination squad!' Bel snapped casually to the woman but then everyone stopped… 'Wait a minute…so you figured out who we are. So that leaves us with two questions: who are you and how do you know who we are?' she opened her mouth to respond, but he didn't let her 'Well, who cares? I'll just kill you now that-!'

'Eep! No, you mustn't do that or that crazy boss will get very mad!'

'Tch! You're still not leaving this room unscathed-I have to sharpen my knives anyway!'

_Huh?_ '_**Eh**_? I mean wh-_**kyah**_! Get him away from me-get him away from me!' she abandoned her seat as soon she saw him closing in, with that stupid little knife in hand. She started trying to evade him desperately, running anywhere that might be safe, in the end settling for a large sofa.

'MynameisFrancescaTutsiandI'mtheboss''tlethimhurtme, pleasepleasepleaseplease!'

The mention of her relation to his boss seemed to stop the sadistic youth in his tracks...for the moment.

'Oh? You are the boss's...**that**? Can you prove it?'

'Well, um, certainly-...'

'Commander Squalo warned us about a woman named Francesca who would be staying here Bel. Isn't that enough proof?'

'How do we know-?'

He sensed it; never betraying his title as an assassin and all that came with it, he managed to avoid a projectile object aiming for his head. Who could have thrown it though?

He took a leisured look at the route the item chucked at him followed -in reverse-, and saw none other than: 'Boss!'

'I...was sleeping...and **you** just woke me up.'

.

He could have said the house had caught on fire, but none would move nearly as quickly as they did when they heard their boss's words; communicating to one another, they all made a run for it!

Even Francesca.

* * *

><p><strong>AN**: you know, sometimes I feel bad when I abuse my OCs thusly...Pfff, right! I enjoy it a lot!


	6. Deliquent or Assassin Squad?

**A/N**: Well this took long. Sorry...anyway, here it is. Plots starts thickening in a certain part. Then not again but there you have it!

**Beta'd** by Orihara Izaya. Thank you so much for unstumping me, too!

* * *

><p>This just had had to stop; it was barely the third day ever since the rest of them arrived and all of her stuff were still missing! She had no idea why would these people try to make her life miserable -that is, if being a bastard didn't count- but they were obviously masters at it.<p>

Without even thinking, she'd found herself in front of Squalo's door looking thunderous. If there was one person who knew what the hell was happening **and **was willing to tell her anything...that would be him.

'Squalo, I recall seeing you carrying my creams two hours ago;' she said, not quite looking inside yet, in case any of the rest were passing by with evidence of their transgressions in hand 'do you have any idea where they-...?'

And then she saw the last thing she expected to: Squalo was sitting on the sofa of his room with his edged weapons -backups or not- laid out in front of him while he did his best to sharpen and polish them...with her creams. All of them! And they were almost empty, too!

He stopped for a brief moment, looking up from his task. And the cloth in his hand full of the creams she bought not two weeks ago.

'Oh. You needed them? Sorry, I had no idea.'

_Yeah right, you liar; they say they are facial creams, of course you knew!_

'Besides, I'm doing you a favour: they don't seem to work all that much on your face so why don't you order some new ones for yourself and these for me?'

'What!'

'What "what"? You deaf scum?'

'Of-!'

'Then go order some more; they do wonders for the blade...!'

'But I don't have-!'

'Is this about money...? VOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOI! Who do you think I am? I'll pay for them, of course!'

. . .

She hung her head defeated and after nodding once, she left his room. He'd never get it. And then she realized she wouldn't be getting any information out of him, too; if he had something of hers then that only meant two things: he either went into her room looking for loot, which was highly unlikely, or he was given the creams by someone else who did. And that seemed most reasonable. So, if someone gave them to him then he knew who it was...but didn't say. Thus he had no intention of ever telling her.

Thus, she had to find out for herself.

Fine then; she could play detective. She only needed to combine the facts with her knowledge and she would be heading towards the answer-that was an easy task for her: she'd read so many mystery and detective novels, she felt she already had the answer! So, now she only had to find the fence that gave away her stolen goods...and see if there really was one. After all, the fence and the thief might be the same person.

But she knew for certain one thing: money was involved. And if money were involved, she only had one place to go to...Mammon.

She tip-toed around the house all the way to his room immediately; so far she was missing several things: some of her research was gone, dangerous liquids she took with her from her aunt's lab as well as some of her dresses and towels and last but not least...components for Xanxus' medicine. Even if the rest weren't enough to qualify as a reason to want them back, the last one was: she had one hour till she found them again or else something bad would happen to her...

'Hey Mammon...'

But he wasn't in there.

He was nowhere in his room in general. Where could he have gone? Ah, no matter; she'd simply take her sweet time and look around...

And when she finished looking around she found nothing. Of course, she should have known. Mammon was surprisingly a mature albeit money-loving person thus he wouldn't engage in such demeaning acts. Then who would...?

Ah! But of course: Bel!

Oh wait; he was a psychopath. He had so far thrown at her two sets of knives that had it not been for the couch at one instance and Levi at another she would have been cut down. Heh, she'd shamelessly used Levi as a shield at the time-after he'd offered himself up of course.

_-'This is to protect the will of the boss; I, Leviathan, will take the blow instead of you!' he'd shouted proudly as he jumped in front of her, receiving the surprising total number of eighteen knives and surviving!_

_And then the boss came by, watching the scene...and hit him for it! She was left shocked but she was even more shocked when she saw Levi crying-not because he was crying but because: 'I didn't do it well enough; the boss felt I let him down by not making it in time to not even allow the knives to be thrown. I failed him...!'_

_She then proceeded to take care of his wounds, still flabbergasted, but he had served his purpose successfully so she should be feeling a little better he became a regular strainer._-

So she couldn't just go into Bel's room without making sure he **wasn't **there! And maybe have someone with her for protection if bad came to worse; but Squalo was out of the question-he was obviously preoccupied with swords' maintenance. So what about Lussuria...?

He was the sole member even remotely bearable: he wasn't hostile towards her, he wasn't even mean! He was pleasant and courteous with her even if he too had some quirks, like calling her "mama's daughter"...and he of course was the mother.

But she would take her chances; she trotted to his room, always keeping a sharp eye, and then knocked twice on the door.

'Enter~!'

And when she did, she was left gaping.

'Are these my...clothes?'

'Oh, if it isn't Franny-chan!'

He turned to her: he had a measure hanging from either side of his neck, a needle-cushion as part of his clothing. 'Yes, yes, these are your clothes! See how beautiful some of them are now? See how beautiful I'm making them? Isn't mama Lussuria the best?'

All around him lay fabrics and feathers as well as rows of payets of all colours and designs...but the most horrific part was that many of the scary items lying on the floor were also attached on her clothing now! On her precious dresses they were and now it would take aeons to get them off!

'And do you know what the best part is?'

_Oh no... _

'These are all permanent! Te he, he! I used a super advanced sewing technique for impermeable stitches! Ho, ho, ho isn't it great? Now all of your clothes will forever be just as fabulous as mama's! Aren't you happy?'

'Be-beyond reason...'

She didn't know what the hell was wrong with him but she just didn't have the will to ask anymore. And she even spotted a vintage dress her aunt had given her from the '30s which now was covered in feathers and flamboyant purple. Why, oh why her?

She didn't even have the will to ask him to come with her, but even if he took the clothes on his own or someone else gave them to him.

She left for Bel's room disheartened, not even looking up as she went.

'Ouch!'

'Ah!'

'Watch where you're going Levi-...oh my God is that one of my missing towels? Are you _wearing around your waist_ one of my own **freaking** towels! **Why**?' she fell on her knees and started shaking her head, feeling helpless.

Levi was naked but _her_ towel around his crotch.

'Oh sorry, did you need it? When the boss gave it to me he said nothing...'

_Xanxus gave it to him?_

'But don't feel cheated, Francesca.' he said suddenly passion rising in his voice. His hand landed heavy -and very clumsily- on her shoulder. 'He only means to test your loyalty in him. And now it has been tested: you didn't give in and tried to take things away from us. So, in return for your commendable actions, here: take your towel back.'

He gave her the towel.

He took the towel off, remaining naked in the process and extended his hand to her. And smiled.

**Naked**.

'Kyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!'

She started running away.

'Boss, I prefer to be killed by boss's flames-I don't want my eyes to bleed to death no, no, no, no! I better go to him saying I don't know where his medicine are rather than-

_**BOOM!**_

By the tremor the small explosion created, she shook and fell.

'What the hell was that! It came from Bel's room...'

She decided to change her course for now but as she stood up she distantly heard...

'_Wait Francesca, your towel; you forgot your towel_!'

Fear reflected in her eyes, she turned around, only to see a naked Levi running towards her with the towel still in his hand. Naked. Running.

She started running herself -wishing really hard that someone would come out of a corner with a bazooka or something to put her out of her misery!

'Hey guys, look: I'm all black now. Shi shi shi; black is the most fashionable colour.' Bel said as he came into the corridor by some other hall.

'Oh? Did anyone say "fashionable"?' Lussuria asked appearing out of nowhere with a feather stuck in his hair.

'Oh my; why is Levi-chan naked?'

'Because he's a pervert of course.'

The moustached man coloured immediately by the thoughtless comment of his co-worker and cohabitant.

'What are you saying? Weren't you naked two weeks ago as well? Doesn't that make you a pervert, too?'

'No.'

'Why not!'

'Because I'm a prince...'

_That isn't a reasonable argument_...

'Ho, ho, ho; you keep mama Lussuria amused boys.'

'Lussuria stop making a fool of yourself; if boss saw you now-!'

'What? You think he wouldn't like me? But I'm groomed enough!'

'Shi shi shi something tells me the grooming isn't the part he'd mind about.'

She took the opportunity to escape; now that everyone was too caught up in arguing, Levi would leave her alone and she'd be able to choose her poison.

'VOOOOOOOOOOOI! The lot of you scum, shut the fuck up!'

'Now, now commander Squalo don't get too upset; what if your lovely hair falls off and you have no means to grow them back again?'

Squalo fidgeted; he had been noticing more hairs than normal on his pillow lately...

'And you think that's what causes hair to fall?'

'Oh yes! I know of a special shampoo that stops it though!'

'Really? Where can I find it?'

'Well, you have to go to this store; as you-...'

A shadow was cast, deceptively resembling Xanxus'.

'Uh huh; someone's in trouble~.'

'Francesca.'

She stopped in her tracks at the sound of her boss' demanding voice.

'C-coming...'

She followed after him, keeping the safe distance of two metres. He turned to her only when they were inside his room.

'Um, I don't, you see your medicine-'

He threw them at her.

_Why does he always have to aim for my face!_

She realized not only was he the culprit he did it just to spite her and probably study whatever it was he was taking. Peachy. As if torturing her with making her sleep on the couch, clean his carpet, cook his food etc, etc wasn't bad enough...

.

.

'Oh dear God, I swear, if one person soaks me one more time I'll goddamn **snap**! I've suffered the insufferable and now here I am, in a bath, talking to myself while scrubbing the shame away! And when I say shame, I mean a rather gooey substance Bel threw at me for no particular reason! And then Squalo thought it'd be alright if he rubbed it off with sand? I hate them all so much, especially when put together!'

She continued grinding her own skin with meticulous fury; she would put up with nothing else! That was the last straw! No more sitting through anything quietly, only Xanxus' abuse would she tolerate from now on.

'Goddamn pests! Annoying prats! Freaking controlling-!'

'...If you're done swearing we need you outside.'

'Oh goddamn it, fine! I'll be-...'

She looked at her right out of habit, when she realized the voice didn't come from out the door…but from somewhere close inside.

She shivered.

And then she saw it: Bel's head was peaking in on her from within the curtains, smirking wildly. She could not see his eyes but that malevolent simper was enough to scare her.

And that would of course pose no problem, considering her daily life the last few days, had she not been in the bathtub, naked to the bone-

'KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! SWEET Mary mother of GOD! Why **the hell** are you in my bathroom!

She tried covering herself anyway she could, but the sole means left to her available to do that were one towel small enough to cover either her boobs **or** her womanhood or a feathered bathrobe...and somehow the latter seemed like the poor choice.

'Getoutgetoutgetout!'

'Shi shi shi; what are you covering now for? I already saw whatever little was to be seen.'

_. . .Little. Did he say __**little**_?

.

'Did you see Francesca or Bel?' asked Squalo testily.

He was already pissed enough his boss made him out to be nothing but a messenger. Now two of those who were supposed to show up were missing? What would he say to him?

'Bel-chan volunteered ten minutes ago but he's disappeared ever since~...do you think something happened?'

'Commander' Levi said solemnly 'let me go find both of them. I will have them back before you say VOI!'

'We'll wait-'

They heard a screech.

'_Get out __**NOOOOOOOOOW**__!' _

And them some clashing.

And then sounds of struggle were heard from the hall; then they stopped.

Then dragging sounds were coming closer and closer until they were stifled by the deafening picture of Bel dragging a gagged and bound Francesca who was dressed in a very eccentric -meaning feathered- green bathrobe.

Her hair was wet, clinging to her face and shoulders.

'Ah, here they are~! Let's all go to the boss then.'

'Fuuum! Humph! Huuuum! Huh!'

Squalo's eyes twitched.

'Shut up; you're only making noise gagged like that.'

'Huuuuuuuum!'

'Now, now Squ-chan, don't talk to her like that; can't you see she's distressed? -_Who cares?_ Squalo snapped but none paid attention- Don't worry Franny-chan; we'll let you talk as soon as the boss says so.'

Well, hell; didn't that mean she'd stay forever so? Shit.

.

.

.

'And then they wouldn't let me speak until I made everyone dinner!' she started crying 'I can't take this anymore, I'm abused all the time and-...I just feel so alone...!' she said in between sobs and pauses.

'I just wish...' she sniffed many times.

'I just wish' she sniffed a lot more 'someone would be on my side...!'

Then, she proceeded to blow her nose on the thirteenth handkerchief Nono had given her that hour.

It was Friday and, as agreed between the two men, Xanxus would take Francesca -and most importantly, her research- to Nono.

And that he did. Maybe not directly, but he kept his word: it was about twelve when the three of them -Bel, Mammon and Francesca- had arrived, and now it was already two.

Nono had requested to be left alone with the girl after the first hour while his guardians would keep an eye out for any missteps from the two Varia members who brought her...or any more Varia members turning up unexpectedly.

He wanted to talk with her and that's what they were doing. Well, talk is a relative term. She ranted insatiably and he listened. Of course, with all the horrible things he'd heard, he didn't find it surprising she was wailing and feeling alone.

He patted her head affectionately.

'There, there, don't be so negative my dear; things could be admittedly much worse.'

She looked up flabbergasted.

'How?'

She didn't even recognise her own voice from its shrillness.

'Well...you're still alive and physically unhurt. The worst thing they did to you was throw things at you that weren't even sharp.'

'Bel threw knives.' she mumbled pouty.

'But none hit you, no?'

'Well...'

'Now see? Not everything is tragic; wipe your tears dear child...'

She sniffed but did as he told her; she even calmed down a little.

Nono **still** couldn't see how any of this was relative to the "how is your research going?" question he posed earlier though. But he knew she had to take these off her chest-and by all means, she should, too.

'So...I'm a bit behind in the research due to everything that's been happening.'

_Ah, that's what this is all about._

'Just the fact you made **some** sort of progress is admirable considering the circumstances; don't worry. Once you get used to their crazy rhythms you'll settle in a schedule and everything will be better. And I can understand how that may take even more than a month. Now' he said and stood up, Francesca finally letting go of him.

'I believe it is dangerous to keep you here any longer; why don't you go back to Mammon and Bel?'

She sniffed.

'OK...'

'And don't despair; you'll be here in a week again!'

She smiled as she was getting up.

'Right, of course.'

Her puffy eyes brightened as she wiped at her nose and let out a suppressed sob. 'Goodbye.'

'...and good luck. You are definitely going to need it.'

Suddenly, she watered again. 'I-I...I knoooooooooow!'

When he was sure she was out of earshot, in fear of another breakdown from the girl, he spoke to himself: 'Dear me; how **is** she still alive?'

.

.

After her brief encounter with Nono she felt obviously better. Both Varias noticed when they saw her approach, and there was something akin to a beat synchronizing her footsteps, a feat they had never seen her accomplish before.

Combined with her puffy eyes they realized she was just damn weird because if one cried enough to display such evidence, then they shouldn't be so happy no matter what.

'If the Nono gave you any sort of reassurance you'll be leaving us any time soon, he is wrong to do so.' Mammon merely said the moment she was close enough.

The fact her upbeat humming didn't stop meant that wasn't the case.

'He never would; he has an arrangement with boss, I do know that.'

'Then what are you so happy about? He promised you a man-slave for all your troubles?'

'B-Belphegor! How can you say that? Of course not...'

'Then why the hell are you so happy?'

She smiled enigmatically.

'Who knows...? Maybe I've just renewed my belief in-.'

'_**Would you stop your fucking idle chatter**_!'

Xanxus booming voice made her jump up straight; she looked everywhere around her scared and alerted. _Where, where can he be? He didn't follow us here I know that for sure! Where is his voice coming from?_

Mammon too tried very discreetly to search for the source of the boss' shouting but, looking at Bel's even more mischievous than normal smirk he realized he had something to do with it. And Xanxus' presence wasn't at all required.

She was still looking around her with caution though.

'Where? Where is he? Can you see him?'

'Where is who?' Bel asked "wondered".

'Xanxus of course...'

'What are you talking about? And why did you stop talking anyway?'

'What do you mean-didn't you hear boss shouting at me three seconds ago? Mammon say something, you heard it, too!'

But Mammon only shrugged like nothing had happened; she gaped.

'See? None of us heard it...'

'No way...'

She looked around her like something unworldly was stalking her every step.

'No way...'

'Are you hearing voices now? Shi shi shi...'

'That's nothing to laugh about; but for the right price I can help you fight it.'

'I have no money for that! And-and it can't be-he must have been here-or-or' she crouched behind Bel 'or maybe he called and-and-and...'

'Don't worry; you'll be alright...eventually. Shi shi shi.'

'Shut up, shut _up_! If you're right and I **am** hearing voices then-then I must, I must-!'

'_**Just shut the fuck up**_!'

'KYAH! There he was again! There he was! Tell me you heard him too please tell you heard him!'

'...nope, nothing!'

'Stop smirking and laughing at me, it's not funny! I'm hearing things now? Oh god please tell me I'm not losing it.'

'..._I'm_ your god now and I'm telling you, you're losing it.'

She whimpered.

'No...'

'Yes.'

'Must be hard to live with something like that; why don't you write it all down? If you manage to live for more than four years while listening to the voices we can publish it and become very rich.'

'Is that all you care about! I'm freaking losing it and that's all you care about?'

'...yes.'

'Relax; maybe you're not losing it. Maybe you just hear his voice as some sort of conscience.'

Still crouching behind Bel, her head peaking over his shoulder, she darted her eyes to his now emotionless.

'_My_ conscience is Xanxus' voice? **Why**? Why would any person's conscience have his voice for that matter? How much worse can they be?'

'Then how else do you explain it?' he probed further, his own devilish eyes darting to hers...

'Good point.'

He smirked.

'Oh my God.'

But what she didn't know was that Bel's ring had a special mechanism that played the pre-recorder voice of their boss in great quality but -most importantly- in a very loud volume...

Bel smirked once more as he deftly pushed the ring's fake green jewel again.

.

When they finally arrived at the Varia headquarters, she was still shaking with fear, walking behind Bel for better or for worse. She had heard his voice a couple of times more but the others hadn't and she had just about started thinking she was really going insane. Every single time she heard him, he shouted at her and she now honestly believed there was something very wrong with her.

They went inside and just as they entered Squalo was ready to leave.

'About fucking time you showed up; I was just-...why are you crouching behind him?' he turned to Bel even more confused. 'And why the hell are you **letting **her?'

'She's losing it.' Bel said simpering.

'She's what now?'

'Don't say it like that, it makes it sound credible!'

'She's losing her mind, commander Squalo.'

'Are you sure Mammon?'

'Very.'

He eyed her, as if weighing her with her mind.

'_Francesca, my medicine, now.'_

'AAH!'

She jumped and shivered. There, she was hearing things again, she heard his voice just now she thought while trembling all over.

Yet, everyone was looking at her like an alien. And most of all...none other but **Xanxus** was shooting daggers to the overly-scared young woman.

His patience was starting to be tested all the more lately and he really didn't like it. And why did she jump when he called for her? Fucking retard gets scared a week later...

'Didn't you hear me bitch? My medicine. Now!'

She whimpered.

'What's wrong with her?' Squalo asked, examining her. 'Oi, what's wrong with you?'

'I already told you...she's losing it, shi shi shi.'

'That is no reason not to reply to our boss!' Levi said, springing up from somewhere that no one really understood where from.

Then, Mammon slowly started making for the exit; he had no intention of being in the crossfire when Xanxus would finally lash out. And he would soon enough by the looks of it.

But from the Levi intervention she looked up.

'You-you mean you heard him, too?'

Xanxus was about to snap. What did she mean they heard him, too? Of course they would, why wouldn't they? Was she playing mind games...with _**him**_?

'VOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOI! What's wrong with you? Of course we can hear him-why the hell wouldn't we? And why the hell are you still shaking?'

'R-r-r-really...? You can?'

She dared to look up.

And then she saw him: there he was, standing under the threshold of the main hall in all his glory (?), looking mightily pissed.

Wait a minute...did she just thought mightily pissed?

_Oh hell no!_

'You mean you thought you were hearing him _before_ without him actually being there? Oh, poor Franny-chan~! A woman's heart can play such tricks...'

'What do you mean "a woman's heart"? It's not like I'm not in love with him; if anything he terrifies me! He's uncivilized and _very rude_-KYAH! Sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I'm coming right away...!'

She managed to avoid the fire ball aimed at her just in time, for no other reason that Bel ducked in time not to get hit, seeing she was still attached on his person.

Sadly, Bel realized he took her with him and she avoided it, too. Oh well, maybe he'd "get" her next time.

As Xanxus was walking away, now calmer than three seconds ago, she hurried after him in hopes she wouldn't be burned to a crisp, in account of doing as he wanted.

'You intend to keep dragging your feet, scum?'

'Oh, sorry...' she strived to catch up. 'Why are you in such a hurry today? You always hate it when you have to take your medicine.'

He said nothing till they reached his room and he was sprawling on his bed; seeing he had no intention of replying she didn't push him fearing another fireball. After she gave him his time to do whatever he wanted, he finally spoke.

'How is my progress?'

Kneeling next to him while applying the ointment she'd cooked up, she looked up surprised.

She considered.

'It's better; not good enough for you to be having any more angry outbursts such as the one before -where you tried to burn us alive- but not bad enough not to endure one of them.'

'When can I move freely again?'

'_Move_? You can move whenever you like. But you can actively use your flames again in at least a month from now. Your body is still warming up to the temperatures it was used to, plus I fear your scars have something to do with your nerves. I'd never paid real attention to this before and I thought I was seeing things: your scars were bigger the moment you were released from the ice than an hour later. But I was too distraught to pay any mind; and then three days ago I'd thought I'd seen something growing on your face but now I'm certain: the angrier you grow, the more your scars come back. I know it has something to do with that flame of yours.'

'...explain.'

_Did he just ask me to _explain_? And he's all talkative today, weird..._

'I've been doing my best to lessen the scarring on your skin and, for one part, it worked. But then, you got angry and some of it came back. But then again, lo and behold, once you stopped fuming' she received a tugging on her hair to that part, but she bore with it proudly -actually meaning she didn't cry- 'the scarring receded. I have the impression that due to the fact the scars were made by Nono's flames they react with yours; when your body heats up with the flame, the parts of your skin scorched by the other flames react and become prominent.'

All these explanations were driving him into a sleep-reduced coma, which he tried to resist. After all it was his own body she was insatiably drawling about.

'So in other words, my skin has memory.'

'...yes, in a nutshell...and in a much distorted way. But the point is-!'

'Who cares?'

She'd stopped pouting every time he did that seeing it was so frequent; now she just deflated and shrunk back to her hind. Yet, she ignored his stare as she continued meticulously tending to the remainder of his charred skin.

But she couldn't help herself anymore.

'But, point is why would you ask this so suddenly?'

He did not respond; he had no intention to nor did he like where this conversation was going. She was too nosy to want to know something like that.

'...this is the first time you brought this up ever since I met you so...'

He still didn't say anything. In fact, he was trying his hardest not to react violently again because he could feel the exhaustion from two simple fireballs.

'And you'd never wanted such detail before and _you_ actually asked me to explain so-!'

'I wanna kill off all the other candidates for the position of the tenth and you better make sure my body is up to it. Now shut up.'

. . .

A moment passed.

'Why the hell d'you stop?'

She flinched.

'Go on, scum!'

'S-sorry...'

She kept patching him; yet she said nothing else.

He wanted to kill off all those people he thought of us brothers? How could he? Tch, then again he never was the sensitive or emotional man to engage himself in sentimental bonds with the people who were supposed to be his family...or maybe, just because of that, he wanted them dead all the more. Just because they lied to him.

Just because they didn't help him.

She sighed; 'You are such a child sometimes.'

OK, there were other solutions than fireballs.

He grabbed her by the hair once more and pulled her back.

'What d'you call me bitch?'

He held her there; she tried not to cry.

'Wh-what, did I call you something? Why...are you hurting me?'

_Did I just say that out loud? Oh god, why? **WHY**!_

'First you hear my voice when I'm not there and then you don't remember speaking?'

Feeling her cheeks burn bright out of shame, she looked down. Thankfully, he released her and she wouldn't have to suffer this any longer. She'd swear she'd die out of embarrassment if this kept up.

She disregarded his dark self-satisfied chuckle and scurried away...

* * *

><p><strong>AN**: So tell me what you thought! Review or message~! Well, both are welcome! ^^


	7. Paying back her dues

**A/N**: Update; I know I haven't been a good sport lately, but I'm writing, I promise! Thank you all so much for the faves and the alerts and of course the reviews! They really keep me going!

Beta'd by **Orihara Izaya**. Thank you my amazing beta! Look her up; she's here, too!

* * *

><p>'You found a new way to tease her you say?' Lussuria asked Bel who seemed too happy with these news than any other person in this house would be.<p>

And that's just suspicious.

'Oh yes; I have found out that every time she hears the boss's voice she jumps or whimpers. U shi shi shi...it's very fun watching her anguish every time.'

'Bel-chan...Don't you think you're being a little too harsh on her?'

'You only say that because now you're not the only woman in the squad anymore, tranny!'

'Well, that, too but don't forget-we were nearly as mean to you when you were the newbie Bel-chan.'

Squalo snorted.

'Yes, we were; we were much harsher, too.'

'Yes, but it was always according to his abilities; we never put on his plate more than he could handle...'

Levi, who was pacing up and down the room -with a thoughtful expression on his face and nothing but a pair of boxers on his person-, sighed.

'Lussuria is right. She is valuable to the boss because of her mental abilities; if you cancel those out by making her doubt herself then our beloved boss will remain without a doctor. Do you want our boss to be in danger? Mammon say something.'

'I offered to help her but she had no money. It isn't my fault.' he simply stated, shrugging.

'And you only say that because you've already tortured her Levi.' Bel countered again, never losing his wide smirk.

Everyone started chuckling.

'What do you mean by that? How did _**I**_ ever torture her? I'd never do anything that would put the boss in danger-you know that, stop laughing!'

'Aw, Levi-chan, you're so naive.'

'Yeah; and a pervert, too!' Bel agreed always laughing.

'I'm not a pervert!'

'Ha ha, yes you are! You were running after her naked!'

'And that's all the torture you could ever plan on giving her!'

'That's no torture! I was only giving her, her towel back! She asked for it.'

'Yeah, before she saw you were wearing it!'

'Commander Squalo, please understand! I didn't mean to scare her. I only tried to do as boss told me.'

'Boss told you to scare her like that so she wouldn't be afraid of dying on one of his anger outbursts? He's truly a genius.'

They all laughed at Squalo's joke once more; Levi coloured.

'Th-that's not-...'

'Why the hell are you all laughing like that?'

The moment Francesca's voice was heard all the mirth in the room subsided...momentarily.

'Bwahahahahaha!' Squalo started again.

He would never forget her frightful face when she'd encountered Levi that day. Oh, that was sure a memory to recall every time he felt bad.

Unknown to her the reasons of their sudden good mood, she kept an eyebrow raised questioning their mental capacity. Why were Italy's best assassins' just a bunch of children? All of them, even the boss though he never laughed; some laughter could do him good though.

'Boss said he needs us all in the secondary dining room.' she snapped distastefully in the end.

She preferred to keep her thoughts to herself for now. There was no need to show she had started getting used to these crazy people or else they'd do worse to her-much worse than muffling her or throwing knives at her.

Everyone got serious.

Bel got annoyed; she was ruining his fun. Was it his fault really that he decided to do what he did?

Slowly, without being percepted, he pushed his ring's jewel.

'_**Fucking move, scum!'**_

She jumped; looking around panicked, she went closer to the rest.

'Y-you heard that, right? Just now? Boss was-!'

'I heard nothing.'

Squalo's emotionless and natural response, made her whimper.

'I didn't hear anything, too. In fact none of us did.' Bel said shrugging, trying to prevent anyone from spoiling his fun. 'Francesca, you're officially crazy now.'

She whimpered again, her fears starting to come true: day by day, being in their presence did nothing to her but drive her off the deep end. She'd sooner start quacking than get better. She looked for the only man she felt she was able to count on.

As Squalo was about to bypass her, she grabbed onto his back, burying her face in his hair...

OK, so maybe she did it because she always wanted beautiful hair like Squalo's.

'VOI! Gerroff me, trash!'

'N-no please...'

'U shi shi, commander Squalo does have a pet...'

'I'm not a pet!'

'Then why don't you stop clinging on to him like a scared dog?'

'...Because I **am** scared.'

'See? I knew it.'

'I said I was scared, not a dog! Just please stop, I-I can't, I mean...!'

'Aw...Franny-chan, relax don't be scared. I'm sure no matter what it is it'll soon go away.' Lussuria tried to reassure her, patting her back.

He would shoot Bel a dirty look, but in truth he liked what Bel was doing to her. It was fun to watch, especially after having the knowledge it wasn't on his expense. And Bel sure knew how to pull a good prank.

She started sobbing; she grabbed onto the long white mane tighter and didn't raise her head again no matter how many times she was pulled or Bel pushed the fake green jewel of his ring.

They had to hand it to her though; despite all the crazy things happening around her, she was sure to adapt to everything they threw at her.

At some file of their minds they catalogued this, too; if this helped figuring her out for their boss's sake then this was welcome.

As they entered the luxurious secondary dining room, a plate flew right past her.

'Why the hell are you still planted on Squalo? Serve the food, bitch!'

Not only did she hear him, she saw the plate passing right next to her ear. That meant he was there...all was well.

She immediately did as he commanded.

'Do you think she'll ever realize where that voice she hears comes from, Squ-chan?'

'If she's as smart as she **says** she is, I guess a week or two will suffice.'

'I bet it'll be more.' Bel snapped.

'How much are you willing to bet?' Mammon asked immediately.

'Two thousand it's a month.'

'Two thousand on the two weeks.' Squalo insisted on his first estimate.

'I say three!' Lussuria joined.

'And I say should none of you find the correct timeline then _I_ get all of your money; the acceptable deviation will be no more than two days, give or take. From this day forward, the bet is in effect.'

.

.

Mammon won that bet.

She had had her suspicions right off the bat truth be told, seeing Mammon had almost reacted. Almost. And that doubt that he might have actually not heard it was what was eating her away.

And then the rest appeared to be unaware of any sort of rude, booming voice coming from particularly no one in the room. It scared her even more.

Even boss's reaction wasn't what she'd expect: certainly he made fun of her...but de did nothing else. He'd be pissed when she thought she was just hearing things when he was indeed there and he'd be even more vocal about it, but he didn't seem surprised or worried his leading -and sole- scientist was going crazy!

She was supposed to be taking care of him, so, knowing the extent of his ego, she figured he'd want only the best for himself...

But she'd always had the fleeting fear this was an _asylum_ rather than an assassins' den and, at the same time, he never questioned his minions who were so bent on proving her insane with the bright exception of Levi...who simply never interfered.

Maybe that was what scared her the most. Seeing he never did anything to "harm the boss" -thus he would occasionally, in his own peculiar way, protect her from the rest-, it was unsettling he wasn't proving them wrong.

But she hadn't counted on one thing: peer pressure.

At first, it stroke her as odd she would only hear the voice in the presence of the rest of the Varia and, what's more, Bel's in particular. But when she had started forming said opinion in her mind, then she heard her voice all on her own!

Freaking out, she proceeded to hide behind a table and shut her ears...only to realise the further away she were from a certain place in the room the less she heard it.

When she heard it inside her room, too though she saw something resembling a speaker tucked in her pillows...and then she finally knew.

Someone, most probably Belphegor, was playing a very bad game in her expense.

After some correct guesswork (only Bel and Mammon were there the first time and why would Mammon do this to her), she managed to be certain of the identity of the offender -because in her mind, trying to drive a person crazy was most definitely not a practical joke, but a felony-.

Then she made absolutely certain, by confronting Xanxus-...um, not entirely.

One does not simply confront Xanxus after all. She spoke and he nodded. She made theories and he glared or didn't. When he burst out shouting indignant: "The fuck I care if anyone is trying to play mind games with you bitch? Shut up and wrap this up!" she was then assured.

So, when the time was ripe, she got her revenge.

.

.

She, casually walking by the lot of them, heard Xanxus' voice again but this once knew it was Bel's doing. But this once, she didn't flinch -well, after the first shock that is, because she'd always stand erect whenever she heard him- or act scared.

She only...nodded. And proceeded to leave the room.

'I think she's finally losing it...' Bel noticed satisfied and smirked wider.

'Aw damn, I've already lost my money...' Squalo snapped to particularly no one.

Feeling more grumpy than usual, he proceeded to glare at the rest of his team. Glaring at the young self-proclaimed prince more than anyone, he was still pouting when:

They all watched Francesca return, tray in hand, full with many mouth-watering goods: cupcakes, simple cakes, pastries with delicious chocolate glazing, and cookies of all flavours and kinds.

Even more surprised, they watched as she set it down gracefully and proceeded to fetch another tray with drinks: tea and coffee of many sorts with the correct cups.

'Would you like something to drink or eat...or both?'

_What's up with her? She's never done this before? _Was the thought that collectively passed through their minds…but Levi's that is, who was looking the other way ashamed.

'To do such a thing to her and yet, she's taking care of us…what a noble soul.' He muttered instead, tearful.

'Shut up damn it.' Squalo snapped annoyed but immediately turned to the girl. 'And why are you-…?'

'I'm only trying to do as the boss ordered.' the girl stated; there was an air about her that was too calm and unnerved him. 'When I left, he said I should offer you some. So here I am, offering you some.'

They looked at each other; this is what the weird thing he felt was: she had finally lost it. She was really hearing things—coz there's no way in hell Xanxus would ever, ever tell her to bring them food.

They shrugged uncaringly; food was food no matter what the reason it was obtained. They all dug in now, even the guilty Levi…

'Hum…this cupcake has a funny taste…'

'Define "funny" Lussuria-…wait this cake tastes funny, too.'

Suddenly, all Varia members present, exchanged looks horrified; what was there in this food?

Looking at the cook -aka the culprit-, in other words Francesca, they noticed she was smirking so self-complacently, _so meanly_, it put their previous smirks to shame.

They shuddered.

'Wh-what did-…?'

Squalo felt his stomach ache.

'Just what the hell did you-?'

Bel was experiencing the worst of all: he had already passed out; foams were coming out of his mouth; his extremities were twitching and his eyes appeared to have turned in their sockets.

One by one, all of them were falling on the floor, slowly losing their consciousness…

.

.

Francesca stood over them triumphantly; one leg rested on now helpless Bel's head, still wearing that evil smirk.

'This is what you get for trying to screw with me..._your meal-maker_, assholes. Now let's see if you'll think twice or not next time you want to play another prank like that.'

The last thing Squalo could remember was her satanic laugh as she zoomed out of view…

'Once they wake up and give me their shares, the two hundred thousand are yours.'

'Of course; just like we promised: one third of the money of the bet is mine.'

'Glad doing business with you.' Mammon, the only member who didn't get any sort of side-effect from eating, stated as he stood up.

In truth, she'd found out exactly when Lussuria had predicted she would, but Mammon caught up with her and offered her a deal: fifty thousand and she'd uncover it later. Through tough bargains ("if I speak, you get no money at all you know, so there's not much you can do on this one") she managed to raise her share.

Then she proceeded to make the plan: she'd cook up a mild poison and the anti-drug. Then, she'd pour the poison into everything she'd cooked for them and give the cure only to Mammon beforehand.

So now she finally had a small sum of money at her disposal…other than sweet, _sweet _revenge. She concluded she liked this sort of life after all.

She liked it a lot.

Yet the jolting noise of the door being pushed open shook her and she turned around immediately to face an angry Xanxus staring at the floor…

'Is this my team lying on the floor incapacitated?'

She closed her eyes, scared.

'…yes.'

'…'

He stared and stared; looking from her to them repeatedly, he seemed to realize not only what had happened but, most amazingly, _why_ it did, too.

He kicked them all; she gaped.

'Useless bastards, getting poisoned by a little fucking girl…'

.

.

.

For the next month, she had gotten used to this sort of life completely: she no more had qualms about poisoning anyone ever again, as it turned out to be quite an affective method for crowd control. Also, she had no problem betting to get money. In fact she found out she liked gambling a lot.

Of course, seeing how easily they'd been knocked out, Xanxus realized that he and his team were weak against poisoning and, should anyone ever consider that as a method of attack, they'd all be dead. So what did he do? The only thing he thought was a natural result: he made Francesca poison them weekly, till their body got used to it and slowly became immune.

He called it training; they called it torture; Francesca called it revenge. But the truth of the matter was somewhere in-between. It was a "fair" deal for everyone.

Also, she'd made great progress with Xanxus' rehabilitation: even though she realized the coming and going of the scarring on the skin was something she could not control -it seemed permanent- she still saw that it bore no effect on the real temperature of his body…and that was more than she could ask.

Surely, her appointments with Nono grew more and more interesting as she had much more things to discuss with him concerning her aunt's research—a research she was proudly continuing despite the obligatory slow progress. But during one appointment, she was the one on the receiving end…

.

'Francesca, dear child, I greatly appreciate your…discretion when it comes to your questions.'

She smiled proudly; someone had just paid her a compliment. And it was a real compliment, not one to be demolished by something horrible one would say later.

'But even for you, the curiosity must be killing you. Don't you want to know if your parents know the truth about your condition or not?'

She then realized what he was getting at.

She hadn't asked about her parents not out of courtesy -with the thought Nono would later tell her anyway-, but with the thought...she had no intention of ever knowing!

She had no reason to think, know, care about them or to ever contact them again...! At least not just yet.

'Let me inform you my dear child, they know of your circumstance; they have no idea you're the Varia's _prisoner_ of course, they think you merely joined them-...which didn't really make them happy.'

Francesca felt her blood rising to her head; why the hell did her parents think they had any right to judge her and her choices, even if it weren't a choice? They'd never been real parents to her, how dared they think it was alright to criticise her?

'I was tempted to give them some sort of hint then as to why you were there but I knew that would only put them in danger, so I refrained.'

_He's only saying that to make me feel better; there's no way he'd ever risk of such a secret just to relax my parents..._she thought bitterly, but appreciated the effort he put into lying for her.

He might have felt that way, even if he knew he'd never act on it.

'So I'm sorry to be the one to tell you this but they are mad at you.'

Resisting the innate urge to roll her eyes, her attempt at a smile seemed too forced to the man. Well, he could see why; he also knew the girl wasn't in the best terms with her parents but she had to know of this.

'I do not mind; they can be whatever they like.'

'Are you sure? You don't want me to pass a message from you to them?'

'Nope; none at all. They know I'm not dead, so there's no need to contact them for any other reason. After all, when my birthday comes along they'll talk to me again.'

As she replied shrugging, Nono narrowed his eyes intrigued.

'What do you mean?'

'Never mind sir; do you need to tell me anything else, or should I go now? After all, Squalo must be bored-and if not who knows what he's doing?'

'Ha ha, don't worry my dear; now off you go!'

Walking a couple of steps slower than the older man, she was lost in her own thoughts; just what was this "family theme" playing these last couple of days?

Xanxus had asked her again about his abilities and his capacity at fireballs, meaning he was just about ready to go and fry or whatnot the rest of his brothers and now Nono brought up the subject of her own -messed up and overdemanding- family.

This may be luck, but it was also some sort of divine sign to the girl: don't try and see your family yet. It'll be disastrous.

So she didn't accept to send a message to them, in fear of what they may have replied the next week; in fear this was all some big karmic joke on her. And she have had her share of those the past ten years of her life.

'VOOOOOOOI! What were you doing in there for so long? No wonder Bel gets annoyed every time he comes here!'

'Impatient as always, I see.'

'Heh, looking as sharp as always old man.'

'Yeah, right; you are very sorry things turned out this way and blah, blah, blah. Now let's go.' Francesca snarled, already emotional from the information Nono provided her with.

Her parents were mad at her?

What did they _mean_ they were mad at her? Her aunt died, she was emotionally unstable and a crazy guy as a boss-...even if they had no knowledge of the fact she was freaking kidnapped then what about her fragile soul on the first place? Her sole guardian had died and she was so hurt and twisted inside-but did they ever care about her?

_No._

Did they ever care about her feelings?

_No!_

She was always the one to be left behind, always the one to kick around-

'OUCH!'

She looked around offended, trying to figure out who the hell was it that really kicked her on the back.

'Squalo!'

_Of course, who else?_

'What d'you do that for?'

'Because you're spacing out for no reason! Move, scum!'

'F-fine...'

.

.

When they got back, boss called her immediately for his daily dose of medicine.

Considering their last serious "conversation" though, she knew this was no coincidence; Xanxus was anxious to know when he'd be well-enough to go and kill the rest of his family. Oh how horrible did it sound in her head.

She sighed.

'AH!'

A glass broke on her shoulder; she started bleeding.

'Wh-wh-what was that for?' she rushed to somehow stop the blood loss with anything she could find at that moment. 'Ah…it hurts…Ah…-AH!'

She ducked and avoided another one in the nick of time.

'Why are you trying to kill me all of the sudden!'

'. . .'

His glare was enough to shut her up.

Ooh, Xanxus was in a foul mood today. Well, she **had** realized that every time they went to Nono -every given Friday- his temper became worse and even more unpredictable. Surely, that happened **every time** someone would mention Timoteo, but on Friday…his erratic behaviour would reach a critical point.

So she might as well give him something to be happy about or else she predicted her hand would first go septic and then his mood would improve.

'Your progress is amazingly smooth; in fact, it went better than I had anticipated for this month.'

He snorted complacent. But when she saw him glaring at her, she understood he wanted more information.

Understandable.

'I believe it has to do with the fact you rest well; I mean, you lie in bed all day or you sit around in a chair, right? How much strain can _that_ put on y-your body? You're living the perfect life of a patient…'

Somewhere there she suffered blunt force trauma to the head, she was certain of it. She could even remember repeating a letter, which indicated the moment of impact…but she wasn't sure.

That was a bad sign she deemed, but tried not too pay too much mind to the small creek of blood running down her face.

'Also, this is your new medicine. In fact, they are the exact same substances with but one difference: no more needles; I think you've become strong enough to stomach these directly, so serums from now on! It will be easier for you to consume, too.'

She offered him not only a small plastic doctor-like cup thing -which she seemed to have in abundance, as more five of them stood in a tray behind her-, but a big smile, too.

She crept him out.

_What's with her? Did the hit on the head do this to her?_

Grabbing that thing out of her hands, he gulped it all down; holding a hand out for the rest, she gave them consecutively, yet with great care.

'Please lie on your stomach now.'

Cream time; she wiped those on any scars she would found on his person—his back for now, and he could see they had significantly lessened.

Even though he didn't mind the scars, he thought they made him look more experienced and the ladies loved the scars; of course, he _felt_ more experienced as well and he couldn't help but think of them as small medals of his mettle and his troubles. In retrospect, he loved his scars! They made him feel bigger and courageous.

That didn't mean he wanted to be two-coloured though; the scars on his skin were so many originally that he then thought he had two colours: the charred one and his old one. But the more she took care of his body, the less they looked like second skin tone and more like the awards of independence they were.

He felt more than satisfied the scarring was going down enough to be considered just that and not leucism—because that was how extensive the damage to his skin was before.

But now it was fine.

Her hands moved certainly and constantly to the afflicted areas and relaxed him.

She would first apply the lotion and then let it soak in on his skin, rubbing it gently -especially on the shoulder blades that were the hardest part of him and felt the stiffest- ; then, she would wipe her hands on the small towel she'd brought with her and, with odorous ointment in her fingertips, she'd start the second session of massaging...

Honestly, that was how he saw it. Was she applying any less strength, he would always grunt; had she been anything but understanding, he would have forbidden her from touching him again.

But she had realized, from the very first time, thus he had allowed her to continue with her tries to get him better; he didn't mind one bit being treated to this every day and, after all the time he spent frozen like an icicle, he enjoyed the pampering: food the way he wanted, served the way he wanted, at the time he wanted...

His previous standards where more than met and he didn't mind the status-quo staying as it was...even if that meant he would have to put up with this intrusive little pest, spouting small orders around, such as:

'Would you sit up now please?'

Tch, the nerve of her, when he was almost asleep! But at least now she would follow the same dual routine for his pained front muscles.

He didn't mind her intrusiveness only because she knew exactly what she was doing -that lone time he thought she was trying to feel him up he'd made it crystal clear he was not to be fondled, though in fact he was too doubtful she was actually trying to do anything of the sort. Better show her she was not to cop a feel if she felt like it.-

'You're all ready! I shall be taking my leave now...!'

He barely heard her.

How long had it been; an hour?

No, it was half of that. But he didn't fail to realize the faint time disorientation caused by the overall relaxation; in any other case he would be mentally reprimanding himself for such a shameful display...but currently it somehow didn't matter.

It only mattered he was relaxed and ready to fall asleep; so fall asleep he must! There must be a reason his body needs it so much anyway! So he closed his eyes and allowed the sweet sense of sleep overtake him, no matter how desperately the others screamed in the living room.

Why was there screaming in the other room again?

Ah, no matter...it was high time he fell asleep.

.

.

'**KYAH**!'

She ran behind Levi for cover—Levi ran to cover her; it didn't matter who reached the other first. The important thing was that she was once more protected by Bel's vicious and deadly little daggers by allowing the moustached man to take all of the hits for her.

'AH!'

He breathed pain as he rolled over.

'The hell?'

Commander Squalo was wondered, seeing the scene developing in front of him in the small living room s he'd just entered the room. 'Bel, stop throwing knives at her.'

_My saviour,_ she thought delighted...completely disregarding the fact Levi was bleeding on the floor for her.

'But she called me an usurper and a threat!'

'Isn't that a compliment for you?'

'Not when it comes to boss!'

Squalo rolled his eyes.

'Just stop throwing knives at her. The boss will be displeased if she is to be hurt now that his condition -that's getting more and more fitting to deal with his brothers-, depends on her.'

Grumpily, he agreed silently and proceeded to take all of his daggers out of Levi's skin. Small exclamations of pain could be heard by Levi but none really cared.

'Thank you!' she said fondly after the loud man. 'I thought I was going to die back there.'

'VOOOOI! Get off my arm!'

.

.

He hadn't predicted her intended target correctly this once and though he removed his body perfectly from her range of open hands, he failed to realise she was aiming for his arm all along; he was still very squeamish about people grabbing random parts of his body for any reason and surprisingly this woman was a very physical being.

And now his hand was trapped in her death grip of gratitude.

'Sorry but—in this sea of illogical people you're the only one who reminds me of the sane outside world...ah, the outside world! With its beautiful natural sceneries, its foreign places, its different people...!'

He took her little delirium as a chance to slip away quietly and leave.

He needed no woman drama; he had far too much to plan and consider now that his boss appointed him with his first job -ever since he came back from the "dead"-: he had to start tracking down each and every one of Xanxus' adoptive brothers Federico, Massimo, and Enrico.

Then he had to make sure those following them could report at him at any given moment which meant that a constant communication should be established. Well, _that one_ was no problem—since it would be the Varia who would ran after the three men. Squalo but most importantly Xanxus, would never trust anyone else with his business.

Thus, he had to round them up.

Thus, he must turn around and go back into the living room and explain things.

And when he saw Francesca following after him, her eyes shining with wild curiosity, he was certain of one thing: this would be a long night.

=:=:=:=

Francesca walked to her bedroom feeling a little heavier at heart that night. She couldn't help but remember all the details about the new mission the Varia received through their boss for the very first time. It wasn't a gruesome one...but it was sad.

Their new errand was to snuff out the three men who were Xanxus' brothers.

And she would play a hand in this, too even if with a very small role.

As she lay in her bed, staring at the ceiling intently -hoping it would somehow erase the events of this night- she couldn't stop sighing. Resignation, sadness, disappointment, she'd felt them all while she was listening to the admittedly brilliant yet lethal commander lay out the plan.

She still felt it, as she kept hearing their words play in her mind over and over again.

.

.

'Team, gather around!

When no one paid attention, his eyebrow twitched.

'VOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOI! I didn't shout for once and this is what happens? Every fucking one of you, gather around now!'

Slightly jumping up, they did as he told them immediately; there was something about that countenance of his that screamed "let's get down to business" and somehow they knew it was the sort of business the boss would appoint him.

'Our boss has finally made up his mind; he feels ready enough to take action.'

Their ears perked as their eyebrows shot up and they gave him their undivided attention for once.

'It was about time he appointed us a real mission.'

_'Don't speak of the boss like that!' Levi said desperately._

'Finally the boss is coming back.'

_'Don't speak of the boss like that!'_

'Oh, our sweet boss is back in action again~!'

_'Don't speak of the boss like that!'_

'Shut up, the lot of you; it's high time you heard the plan.'

Nodding swiftly, thoroughly ignoring Levi once more, they listened to the white haired man.

'Our targets are three: Massimo, Enrico and Federico. We have to kill them in a way which will not incriminate Xanxus, even though Nono will think of him first as a suspect. In fact, we don't care what he thinks so long he has no tangible proof.

'We need misdirection and distraction.

'Which means, we have to know everything about them before we make any sort of plans about the way of their demise; we'll certainly follow them around, but we also need to know of their personal lives and feuds.

'So, what do we know about them so far?'

* * *

><p><strong>AN**: Next chapter we see more plot and stuff! Hurray! Review and/or message please~!


	8. Planning for the kill

**A/N**: Hey there strager! You are now staring at the next chapter. Hope you enjoy the convoluted plans made by the Varia and Francesca! And a special thanks to all of you who take the time to review and alert and fave!

Special thanks to my beta reader, too Orihara Izaya. Thanks~!

* * *

><p>'So, what do we know about them so far?'<p>

'Enrico is the most qualified for the position of the tenth out of the three; he's smart, practical, and well-informed and loves gunfights. He never turns one down. He thinks of himself like some sort of duellist.'

The torch passed from Mammon to Bel.

'Massimo is second in position should we kill one of them; his strengths are his intuition and his organizing skills. Easily manipulated, though shi shi shi...'

'And then there's Federico; he's the one the Ninth boss favours the most now. He is the most lenient and giving one of the three. He values hard work and dislikes mindless violence. He also disapproves of internal discord. His weaknesses are considered his strengths, too.' Squalo explained hurriedly.

He didn't care about them not-catching anything; he only cared he said it fast enough so if there was even a small chance Xanxus was awake, he wouldn't hear him. No matter he was in another room; somehow he always heard those things that could only be interpreted in a dubious way.

'Who do we target first, commander Squalo?' asked Levi with all of the importance of an assassin about to take on a job.

'Enrico, naturally; that will open up a path of feuding within the family, no matter how much Federico believes friendly fire is unacceptable. In fact, just because of that, the whole family will be divided.

And then we'll take out Massimo.

As the negative feeling for Federico has reached its peak, we'll kill him, too and then it'll seem as retaliation from Massimo's faction.

It's too good; after all the most of the family have no knowledge of the real reason the boss has been absent for so long, thus when everyone is out of the game, he'll be the only viable candidate.

Thus, both no one will suspect him of interfering -if anything they'll marvel at his neutral stance- and the position will be his. Or, even if they do suspect him, then doesn't that just prove his superior intellect and planning?

No matter what, the boss will come out on top. So we have to make sure they die.'

Everyone nodded their non-verbal agreement.

This was an excellent plan after all; even she had to admit it. And certainly, Squalo was good at his job; how he never became the boss of the Varia and allowed Xanxus to overtake him, she still couldn't figure out.

From the little things she read on them from the proceedings and files on the assassins to ever participate in the squad, Squalo had beaten -well, killed- the former boss, sword emperor Tyr, thus _he_ had to be the next head.

But then, suddenly Xanxus appeared and Squalo just gave up the position to him, no fights whatsoever, not even a small tiff.

Not to mention the fact they all put up with the ridiculously whimsical nature of their boss without so much an objection towards his crazy ways...

There was something else going on between these people and she needed to find out. Or maybe it was just the age that played a hand in it.

She shook the thought out of her head; she had to focus on the matter at hand. They were still speaking and they were currently all staring at her.

She blinked.

'What?'

'Didn't you hear us? We'll need your help.'

She blinked again.

'On what?'

'VOOOOOOOOOOOOOOI! You haven't been paying attention? Stupid useless woman, now we have to-!'

'Hey!' she snubbed suddenly and stood up. 'I spaced off for a little while, that doesn't mean you can call me that! For the love of God, give me a break! Is it so hard to repeat one measly little thing? It's not like I heard none of it, I stopped listening after you said the order in which you should kill them! God...! '

They all just stood there speechless; was she talking back? Or was it just their idea?

'How did _you_ grow a spine all of a sudden...?'

'Aw, Franny-chan is stepping out of her shell~!'

'I-...um I mean, whatever, just tell me.'

'We said: we'll kill the first one in a staged gunfight. We think about drowning the second. And we'll need your help with the third.'

She blinked again. 'My help?'

She didn't like the sound of this...and when they all smirked at her, she was definite she'd like none of it.

'We need you to come up with a way to kill the third one; if you want to pass yourself as a member of the squad, consider this as your...initiation.'

She gawked.

They wanted her to do what now? Her initiation would be killing a man with her own two hands—well; with her own brain anyway as there was no way she'd ever physically go after the man. How was this any sort of initiation for her? Hadn't she proved that by doing whatever the hell they wanted?

How would killing a person initiate her in an assassination squad-...? Ooh, she saw where this was going.

Of course, she would have to prove herself a worthy killer if she wanted to formally be accepted by them, but most importantly by Xanxus. She started seeing it in the way Squalo's eyebrow was arched provokingly or Levi's grave look pierced her or Bel's grin widened or even Lussuria's eyebrows wiggled...

'Fine, I'll come up with something.'

'That's right, you'd better.'

'Give me a moment...'

She furrowed her brows deep in feverish thought; her lips were tightly shut, almost white; her hands were tied in front of her as if squeezing herself shut would help her think.

'Tick tack; tick tack...'

She closed her eyes in a final attempt to shut them out, shaking her head; nothing but her thoughts. Nothing but her goal...!

The Varia members exchanged looks, close to laughing at her meditation method, surprised though it seemed to work for her.

She opened her eyes. 'So um...how do you feel about _acid_?'

When they did a double take, she realised they never expected her to come up with something so soon - or so sneaky -; she smiled sheepishly. 'It is the best if you want to cause pain and I know for a fact drowning isn't a happy way to go—too torturous...so isn't this the best if you want to make it look like retaliation for Massimo?'

Squalo looked between his subordinates, from one to another; they appeared, only in his eyes of course, just as amazed at the suggestion as he was. The only indication they were, in fact, was that none commented something smart or scathing about it.

He frowned.

Her idea had merit, but it still needed a lot of work. It **was** to be expected of course—he wouldn't think a person who had never done this before would ever come up with the perfect plan immediately, but the fact she'd come up with something so twisted entertained him.

He smirked; technicalities first, praise later.

'Do you have a powerful enough acid to leave no traces of the person behind?'

'I do...'

'Is it one you have secretly developed or is it one you have told Nono about?'

'Um...no, I didn't confine everything in him, just like I didn't confine everything in my aunt. He doesn't know about it.'

His eyebrows shot up.

'And how much of it will we need for such a feat—to completely obliterate him?'

The way people kept circling her, she started to feel it was a bad idea or she was being interrogated. She hated both thoughts.

'I would guess about half a litre if this is about potency; but if you want to make a real statement then douse him in it and it will take about two litres...though I have to warn you! I have made it so that it burns only tissue, meaning flesh. The bones will probably remain intact.'

'He, no wonder you kept this a secret from your aunt and the ninth!' Squalo chuckled derisively.

She flared.

'What is that supposed to mean? It wasn't a secret—I had no secrets from her! I merely had personal projects I needn't showing!'

'Right...!' Bel fell right in cue and poked at her, too.

'It wasn't a secret! Why should it be anyway? Why would I want to hide it intentionally?'

'Because you're a sadist, that's why!'

The commander's booming laughter could be heard echoing off the big and old walls of the little castle. At her failed attempts of defending herself, they all laughed; her incoherent spluttering amused the lot of them, as they could see Squalo's words actually hit home.

'Ah...whatever.' he sobered suddenly and continued. 'By tomorrow morning -when we'll reconvene this meeting so everyone be prepared-' he added looking to all people around him but then focused on her again 'I want you to have come up with a sufficient enough way in which we can actually succeed in dousing him with said acid.'

She withdrew herself a couple of metres but didn't leave; she only nodded, dipping her head long enough to cover her face with her hair -loose and longer than when they first met her-.

He nodded curtly in return and that was their dismissal.

'Oh, don't forget; you're making breakfast tomorrow, too misses S.'

'"Misses _S_"?' she shrieked appalled.

'Aw, Bel-chan, she's right; don't call her that! A simple "mistress" is more than enough...'

'Mistress? Are you-...insane? You can't call me that!'

'Yeah Luss, she's right; it feels like she _outranks_ me. I prefer Misses S.'

'I prefer it, too u shi shi...'

_I have to take part in this, too_, Levi thought devastated at the idea he might be left out from this bonding exercise with the girl. Tears flooded his eyes; they were finally accepting her as a part of the team! It was a worthy occasion for celebration.

'I vote for Misses S, too! It's the best, Belphegor-san...'

She gawked; even Levi wasn't on her side.

'Fine, you bunch of perverts! Call me whatever the hell you like!'

Squeaking her insults, she ran for the safe shelter of her bedroom...

.

.

And that was how she ended up with the impossible burden of planning another human being's demise. And she couldn't sleep because of it, too!

Aw damn...would she have to present this to the boss, too? Yeah, she figured she would. Right, so she had to plan the best way possible and make sure there were no holes in her schemes and calculations.

Tch that was how she was going to be finally viewed as a worthy person? By finishing another? How ironic, when all she ever wanted to be was a doctor and a scientist—both occupations that helped, not killed...

The next morning found her sleeping in her chair, her head lying on the desk.

'Franny-chan~! Wake up! Rise and shine beautiful flower of the east!'

She started.

'Ah, there it is; she opens her eyes...'

She rubbed the tears from her yawning away and sat up. What's wrong with Lussuria so early in the morning...?

'Come now Franny-chan, you have to get up, cook us breakfast and then tell us your idea! And I can see how hard you've been working; you even slept on your chair.'

He continued, literally dragging her out of said piece of furniture. She felt limp in his hand; so tired was she, she didn't even resist him.

Lussuria made a mental note to himself: if they ever wanted her to do anything she'd usually oppose to, they only had to tire her out by keeping her up all night.

'Fine, I'm coming; I'll go get a shower and be there. The rest aren't up already are they?'

'No, they aren't; alright~! I'll wait for you in the kitchen!'

Damn those insinuations about the kitchen and how she should be in it...she shook her head defeated once more and after changing her clothes hastily, she ran to the one place in this house she felt more like home than any other -to her dismay-.

'Oh, I see you changed your clothes~!'

_Well, duh_, wouldn't cut it to the only person, who hasn't actively tormented her, so she settled for a shrug,

'Oh my, this is actually a rather funky piece; hum...'

Suddenly, the colourful man started humming to himself, thinking hard, hand on chin; he would nod or shake his head all by himself, as if he was having a conversation in his head, judging something.

In the end he smiled widely to Francesca -who had started preparing breakfast by now but with great wariness of the man next to her- and took her face in his hand.

'Mm~, I'm sure we can make a great combination you and I! Why don't we go shopping together one of these days my dear?'

'E, he, he...why not? But will the boss-?'

'Oh the boss will say yes if we're together, don't worry about that~!'

The tears of gratitude she cried in her head were to the controversial man; did this mean they would finally let her leave this place even for some time?

She felt so...moved Lussuria suggested this. It was a good choice to wear the most flamboyant thing in her closet in order to please him after all -she had decided to wear something that would suit his aesthetics for no other reason than he was the kindest and the only one who ever helped her-.

'Oh, this smells so nice; mind if I try it?'

He didn't actually wait for an answer and grabbed a piece of the pancakes she'd already made; he tried it tentatively... 'Oh my, this is delicious~! Aw, Franny-chan, you'll make a perfectly sculptured woman like me gain weight if you keep cooking so amazingly...'

'Oh, a person like you has no problem with that, right?' she played along, waving a hand.

'Oh ho ho, you know how to compliment a girl~!'

She chuckled; Lussuria nudged her.

'So tell me Franny-chan, what do you think of the Varia so far...? And be honest, eh? I'll know if Franny-chan is lying~!'

'Well...' thoughtfully, she scratched her chin; she then went back to making the breakfast 'you're all crazy...and abusive...and sadists...but I guess that's OK because you're very frank about it. I know I should expect the worst thus I have no one else to blame but myself if I get tricked again. Plus, the boss is a league all on his own on spoiled but I can manage there, too...'

'Is that all?' he asked; he was uncharacteristically sober when he asked that.

She deemed it strange.

'Yeah...' said the girl cautiously as she applied the finishing touches to the wonderful both to the eye and the tongue food.

'Aw...so you do love us even if you know all of our faults! I knew Franny-chan is special!'

He hugged her so tightly; she could hear bones fracture...

_If this isn't a threat, I don't know what it is; I think he broke my spine there._

'Now, let's go wake the rest and after we've eaten this most luscious food you'll tell us all about your idea!'

In about half an hour, all of the Varia members, minus the boss of course who always overslept, were devouring the scrumptious pancakes.

'Maybe we shouldn't have given her this initiation mission; she's the best cook out of all of us.'

'Bel-cha~n, I'm hurt!'

Said teenager simply shrugged; but Francesca was almost unaware that secretly everyone was watching her closely, waiting for her to finish up with these trifle things in order to see if she did pull of the whole "plan that murder" thing. Even if they were idly chatting away, teasing one another, in truth they were just masking their "anticipation", if one could put it in such terms.

After the formalities were over, they immediately moved on to the living room, as if that was as good as the base of their operations.

And then she felt it; the way everyone was staring at -their expectancy reflected in their eyes- weighed heavy upon her. And she didn't want to fail. For once, just this once, they trusted her with something completely so she didn't want to let them down.

As sick as it might have been, she could say she put all of her most honest effort into figuring out how to end this man's life -who might have been a much more worthy person than Xanxus to be the boss-, just because someone put faith in her.

She was such a simple person to please...

'Speak; what's your plan?'

Wow; Squalo didn't have to be so...professional, it rubbed her the wrong way.

'Well...' she cleared her throat; she wouldn't allow her nervousness to get the best of her. 'I devised a rather solid plan I believe.

'You see, after everyone thinks it was Federico's men who killed Massimo, we shall "misplace" knowledge of this brand new acid which reduces people to bones...and then place it somewhere where it can be conveniently stolen by Massimo's men.

'Surely, once they understand the potential, they **will** try and steal it—and this is the important part: they **must** succeed! Thus, most of the acid I'll produce, we'll put it anywhere outside of the Varia headquarters; this place is impregnable after all!

'Of course, there is always the possibility that once they steal the acid, they'll be too afraid to actually use it and will just try to mass produce it; and here comes the tricky part: you must excite them enough to consider using it.

'After that, the rest is history. They'll spend all of it on their "assassination"...and if not, you go and steal the rest of it. I want to have the patent—tis my invention after all.'

'Brilliant plan...if you had worked out all of the details!'

Squalo didn't let her bask in the content of her achievement before he tore it all down. 'There are many "ifs" "maybes" and loose ends in this, scum! How are we supposed to convince them if they are not entirely convinced on the first place? How are we supposed to make them see the goddamn acid? How will we "misplace" the information? You think everything is as simple as one of those movies you see, you give out a generic plan and everything falls into place?

'No! It takes fucking work to the smallest detail!'

She was watching him shout and bark and it was nearly as comical as she had thought of it when he was doing it to the others; she was being reprimanded because of her work, not because she was kind or logical or generally not murderous...

That stung more than anything else; she knew she was -objectively- overqualified for this sort of thing, why did she have to present it like a total dimwit? She _had_ worked out the details, but now she missed her notes and everything came out too jumbled...

She knew she should have taken her notebook with her.

But the worst part was that no one, not Lussuria—not even Levi was supporting her.

'Look, I have many details worked out but you didn't give me much more to work with! What else do you want me to present when all you've given me is three names...and a general outline! I can't know whom we should approach when I know none of Massimo's men!'

'VOOOOOOOOOOI, you have something to say about my skills?'

She paled; he looked like his normal self, but she could see now that this side of his anger wasn't always wanted when the sword was pointed to her.

'N-no!' she flailed her arms around like crazy 'I'm sure you know all about them—that's your job and no doubt you're great at it, but all I request is more time and more data; if you give me that, I can arrange even the moment you accidentally brush against him on the street...'

Her pleas seemed to work on him and the white haired man relaxed significantly.

'Hum! That sounds reasonable; fine then! I'll give you a list of everyone and we'll wait until lunch for the exact plan.'

She nodded, relieved beyond any imagination.

'Excellent~! Does that mean we'll have lunch made by Franny's hands?'

'Yes...'

Wait what? That doesn't make sense... 'B-but I'll...won't I have to come up with a more detailed plan? How will I do both-?'

'It's called multi-tasking, u shi shi. Try it.'

She pouted but knew she had no other option. She accepted with a rather dramatic roll of her eyes and lifted herself up from her chair.

'I shall bring Xanxus his food now; after that, I'll concentrate on the plan, so make sure everything's on my desk by then.' she stated, trying to sound as collected and dignified as she could.

Then she was gone.

.

.

.

By the time the lunch was served - even his highness the boss Xanxus attended -, she had devised the perfect plan—for sure this once.

As she was putting the most generous servings in their plates, and then handing them over, everyone seemed to be looking at her in the exact same way as this morning: expectant and serious...

With the exception of Xanxus of course, who was -as usually- bored. She even caught him yawning once or twice.

She gulped uncomfortable.

'I've heard you were the only one who's come up short' Xanxus' voice rang heavy in her ears 'so either speak up now or you're not eating.'

She stopped, looking at him; wow, he knew more about his team than he let on! She was utterly surprised that he had actually bothered to keep himself updated...! But then again, she could bet all she owned this was Squalo's doing.

She sat down all calm and collected though, took a napkin into her hands and straightened it out in her lap.

'After examining all the files Squalo has been kind enough to provide me with'

As she spoke, suddenly the "serious business" feel seeped from her every pore 'and after my own internet research came up with some interesting names and facts, I decided I should-... we sh—_you_ should...'

She corrected herself for the final time, shaking her head disappointed -_And I was doing such a great job at being cool..._- '...you should approach the man named "Juliano" and the woman named "Michaela".'

She then stood up as gracefully as she could, headed to the boss and presented him with two files; then she did the same for all. They hadn't noticed the stack of papers under her arm, but apparently they were there and now they were looking into them.

'How did you find all this info on the internet? They don't really advertise these sorts of things...' Squalo asked either truly surprised or truly suspicious. OK, maybe both.

'I have mean hacker skills; and I mean it.' she added in the end, seeing everyone -but Xanxus- was giving her the raised eyebrow look. 'All that time locked up in a house, you think I have much to go on? Books, internet and the occasional shopping were my only links to the outside world. Thus, I took up a hobby: and when my innate curiosity could no longer be sutured by the normal things on the net, I went for the truly interesting ones, the secret files.'

She shrugged, truly uncaringly. 'Took me the best part of three years -fifteen to eighteen- to finally figure out how to hack _without_ leaving traces, but I learnt. So that means you can relax; nothing can tie back to me or the Varia.'

After hearing that, they all stopped caring; she sighed. Back to explaining then.

'The man is one of the most prominent and influential figures in Massimo's faction while the woman is rumoured to be his favourite...' she seemed to search for the best word 'lover. They both wield great power within the movement, especially now that it's rumoured that Nono shall be retiring.'

'I know the stupid bastard and the whore.'

She cringed at the crudeness of his language.

'If there's one reason she hangs around him at all it's because he has the potential to be Decimo; but none of them are the most influential. Why them?'

He wasn't screaming his head off? That was a new development...!

'I'm glad you noticed-...'

She tried to pull off a superior expression, one she'd learnt from her aunt, but when she saw everyone's murderous faces she decided to just move along modestly. She coughed.

'You see, they are the most _suggestible_ candidates; who is better to crack and think the way we want than a woman who has just seen all of her life's work -to become the wife of the boss- crumble in front of her? She'll be the first and most eager one to point fingers and kill off people if she can help it.

And then there's the case of Juliano; he's the most trustworthy amongst Massimo's men: he'd always been there to clean up messes or take hits for his superior

-'That's a man!' Levi commented with tears of joy and understanding in his eyes, but none noticed-

thus he'd be rather pissed when he dies...all we have to do is make sure no one else gets to him.

Now, getting into the woman's head is easy; I've heard she quite likes young—younger than her men, with long hair preferably...'

She eyed Squalo slyly who seemed to go pale at the very thought -she didn't know why though; she looked like a very beautiful _transvestite_-

'And the man surprisingly is of the same taste.' When instead of nodding they only stared, she sighed and specified. 'You know, as in he also prefers men. His type is not of so young, though...and he definitely wants them manly.' She added as an afterthought.

Everyone looked at her shocked.

'Juliano is gay?' Squalo inquired finally.

That, she deemed, was an unnecessary question...

'Yes...'

Everyone laughed out loud; even Xanxus—even Lussuria did. She was left blinking.

'Why...?'

'Aw, man; and he was supposed to marry Petro's sister!' Squalo said amused, trying to wipe away tears, but in vain: when the old ones faded, the new ones came.

'And he made such a big deal out of me flirting with him.'

'That should have been our tip-off, u shi shi...'

'Well, _duh_;' snapped the girl, speaking up for the first time in the boss's present 'after all, such loyalty and devotion and _undying will_ to protect him must stem from something else...in fact that was my first indicator. I'd dismissed it then because jell, even Levi is like that-'

She couldn't hide the small smile that threatened at that phrase, and the rest only laughed harder.

'Stop laughing—it isn't like that for me! I'm very straight-I'm super straight! I'm so straight, my nickname is Captain Straight!' but he was thoroughly ignored once more.

'-but when I found out he was involved in human trafficking yet, somehow, some of the men on the cargo had mysteriously disappeared...-not to mention bringing in male prostitutes exclusively for his own district on the first place- made me realise.' she finished, still feeling like pointing out the obvious.

'But you hitting on him before, it's very good! We'll have someone to coax him to the right path! Well, you may be a bit young for him—he is pushing thirty now, but you'll still be a flirt so...!'

'And how will we present the acid to them? Just mention it?'

'Aw, don't be absurd Squ-chan~! Franny-chan has made such an effort to make everything perfect for us, don't go ruining it; she'll come to you for advice—you are a famous assassin after all. When she does you'll only tell her cryptically that if it were you, you'd rather something that leaves no trace behind...and she'll find the acid on her own.

Am I right Franny-chan?'

'Quite so!'

'Finally!' Lussuria exclaimed and sprang from his seat just to hug her. 'I knew we always needed another woman in the squad...!'

'And how will we misplace the acid?'

'And how much will making it cost?' Mammon overshadowed Squalo's next question.

'Well...I'm not quite sure; it might cost nothing, if I see I already have the materials I need but even if I don't, its materials are pretty cheap!'

'It better be...or else you're paying.'

'E, he, he don't be like that...as to how we'll misplace the knowledge of such a weapon, it's easy: you'll just make sure you pretend something slipped and you shouldn't have talked and all the sort, but when you leave, you'll leave behind a blank piece of paper...but it'll be like there was something written on top of it and now only the impression remains.

She'll pick it up and try to read it—believe me, she will. And when she does, she'll see nothing else other than the address we'll have placed all of the acid on purpose. Then –this is where Juliano comes in- she'll go to him and ask him what to do.

And this is where he tells her that revenge is the only way; and Lussuria, it's your job to convince him on that.'

'Got it~!'

'Great. And the rest is history; we'll make sure Federico's men are all incapacitated the night -or day or whenever they choose- of the murder thus Federico, who will first try to talk them through it and then fight, will be mercilessly killed.

Easy enough, no?'

That was when they realised her plan could actually work! It was simple, basic, and even if they didn't like depending on other's people's feelings –Juliano's and Michaela's in this case- this was mandatory, given they didn't want to get their hands dirty.

Heh, she did have some potential uses after all; _interesting... _Xanxus thought though he would never speak it out loud.

'So, how do we go about finding that woman a trustworthy, young, long haired guy that's _not_ me? Because I know her, and I can easily say I despise her ugly face.'

'Suck it up; you're going.'

And if Xanxus said it, it was absolute; while everyone seemed amused by the commander's discomfort and showed it in various ways, why was it only her that the boss decided to reprimand about it?

'You cut your giggling the fuck out now, before I decided Michaela is gay, too.'

Her mirth was abruptly extinguished.

.

Two weeks later and nothing had actually changed; yet she was feeling a little lighter, a little better.

Maybe it had to do with the fact she'd finally be made a formal Varia member -with her own trench-coat and matching everything-, or maybe because Xanxus had accepted Lussuria's request, and now they'd be going shopping together...!

That was to say, these two weren't unrelated; one could say he only allowed her to go shopping in order to go and order the uniform as she liked it. Of course, Mammon insisted, she would pay for all of it; no matter this was supposed to be her team uniform, she would pay it since she wanted it custom made.

In fact, Mammon had seethed when he'd heard she wanted it different—_a skirt_ she'd said, _with matching heels_ she'd said; _no need __**not**__ to have the pants, the boots and the trench-coat though_, she'd said.

And that was about when he went crazy and _he'd_ said if she wanted such ridiculous things, she should go pay for them herself.

As long as they had to take measurements thus she had to leave the headquarters, she didn't complain.

And now she and Lussuria were walking down one of the most famous streets in the district, heading to the boutique where all of them were tailored. The man was very proud to have her walk beside him, and he'd let her know that he was also glad she would get to visit the amazing place where she'd get her uniform at last.

'Have you learnt the two new languages yet?'

'Um...the Japanese are going well; the Indian present some sort of problem though.'

'Now, now that won't do; be sure to be well-versed in the languages when the ceremony of your acceptance takes place.'

'They'll be a ceremony?' she echoed, eyes wide.

'Oh of course' he chuckled 'people like us always need an excuse to party, do we not?' he asked all-conspirator like.

He even stroked his hip with hers. He made her laugh.

'I suppose so...so where is this place exactly?'

'Oh, it's just around the corner; the best tailor in the land!'

'Ooh, I'm excited!' she said as they took that turn.

But suddenly she frowned. 'I thought you meant an actual tailor...' she deflated 'why didn't you tell me we'd first go to buy guns?'

'...um?'

The previously distracted by the colourful show cases, Lussuria only then looked at her. 'What are you talking about Franny-chan-...? Oh.'

When he turned to where he looked, he saw it, too: there were a bunch of people with big guns in the shop they were about to go in...in his precious most fashionable sweet little boutique!

No! No! Who would ever dare to-...assault that sacred place like that? The most sacred place of the land...?

'By the look on your face I assume that those guns were not supposed to be there?'

'You assume correctly Francesca.'

His tone was serious; his expression was crazed; his eyes were manic. She raised her eyebrows in surprise.

'And now we're going to go there and make sure these people never do anything of the sort ever again.'

* * *

><p><strong>AN**: And scene~! Please read and review and/or message. I always love the feedback!


	9. First mission?

**A/N**: New chapter~! Sorry it was so belated, but things happened. Life mostly. So enjoy the latest installment!

P.S. This was ready since like three months ago but I kept forgetting to send it to my beta reader, the lovely Orihara Izaya.

* * *

><p>They'd started patrolling the street outside of the boutique; Lussuria had immediately said if they wanted to do this –something she never actually said or agreed to-, they had to do it right: their first task would be securing the parameter. Then, assuring or somehow acquiring firearms or general weapons of their own.<p>

Last but not least, they would barge in there and bring about hell in that tiny space -it was a small store after all, albeit famous and chic-! But without damaging any of the products or the sacred furniture or else his very heart would fail.

"Well, I think with this no one will think setting foot around this place..." Lussuria commented amiably.

After the shock of witnessing his favourite clothes as hostages of some vile nobodies had passed, he'd reverted to his old self easily. He was laughing to himself softly, as he marvelled at his latest "achievement": he'd found on his person something resembling a police line and applied it from the one corner of the opening of the street to the other, on both sides.

Thus he had isolated that portion of the street from the rest, making it look like an ongoing police investigation took place there.

How he'd ever came to own anything resembling the police line of "keep out" she would never know or guess. She did prefer it that way, too; the less she knew the better off she was.

Still, the tall man next to her would not allow her to be idle either; surely, he didn't tell her to invade the shop, guns blazing but he informed her of the part she'd play: "you'll hold the fort" he'd said and blew a kiss in her direction as he taped the line into place.

She'd shaken her head then, and she's shaking it now, too; she only nodded in response to the flamboyant man and took her place in front of the line.

How Lussuria found a police-woman suit in such a short notice gave it to her and then had her stand there solemn, she would never figure out.

She only stood rigid, with a rather stern look on her face, hands held behind her back. He even styled her hair in a conservative style, matching her new persona greatly.

There were some people who tried to go through, despite her presence and she tried her best to talk them out of it...and then she realised she was being out of character. A police officer wouldn't ask! They'd order.

She glared the intruding couple down -taking a page out of her boss's fever-inducing glowers- and raised her head but some few centimetres; she looked down on them.

"I said would you kindly back up sir."

It was a question but it sounded nothing like it; her tone was threatening and her every word was coloured with a deceptive ultimatum: what she'd just said was not to be refuted. End of story.

The man took the message; he smiled weakly at the surprisingly firm girl and guided his girlfriend away.

"Intruding pests; it's my fault for not letting them go there and get killed by stray bullets."

"What did you say officer?"

"Why would I t-?"

Turned as she was the other way, muttering under her breath, the voice only made her nerves worse; why everyone wanted to go in there? And why did this person pretend he had so much authority—his voice reminded her of Xanxus when he was trying to play boss. But when she turned to him, she saw an old man, with a moustache and an exceeding stomach, clad in a police uniform...with highly decorated shoulders.

He was a senior police officer, certainly higher ranking that the one she was impersonating...oh no.

And what if he was from the same police station she was pretending to be—the third?

She gulped with difficulty as her words failed her; she stroke a pose and saluted, all police-like, in accordance to what she'd seen in movies.

"Sir!" she said, her voiced clipped.

Still, she tried her best to be formal and unafraid. She tied her hands behind her back, parting her legs.

"What police station are you from?"

But she must have failed miserably to look the part as the older man so much stared questioningly, almost suspiciously at her, even asking her for identification.

She restlessly searched with her eyes to see what number his uniform bore, hoping to god it wasn't the same.

"Third, sir!" she continued, without faltering once.

She was looking straight ahead, without looking the officer in the eyes.

"You're strange...and we're not the military here."

_You're too disciplined, _he meant and she realized immediately; yet she decided now it would be a good time to play it cool and avoid losing her nerve as the man had probably hoped, to see if she was really an imposter.

"What's your name?"

"I'm Francesca Vera, sir; forgive my behaviour but I _have_ served time in the military sir!"

"Oh!"

Suddenly, his changed; he seemed conversational and somewhat friendlier, even without losing his formality. She mentally sighed with relief. "Then you must be that famous police-woman they brought straight from the battlefield!"

The what? She couldn't believe her luck! "Yes I am, sir."

"Ha ha, wow; I expected you a little older, truth be told. They'd said you're twenty seven."

She pretended to be shy. "I am sir; I simply don't look like it. You should have seen my fellow soldiers; kept complaining how they were being outwitted by a middle schooler."

"Ha ha; I can guess. I have to admit I might had even said the same, had I been your fellow soldier. Well then, carry on with your duties."

"Yes sir!"

"Oh, what are your duties here anyway?"

Shit; now what did she say? Luck had been so kind to her up till now, why did she have to ruin it?

"We'd been informed on an attack happening on this street by a drive-by vehicle and I'm here to make sure no such thing happens, sir."

"That sounds important…and dangerous! Why are you alone?"

"Oh, we received the same threat over twice and nothing happened; the first time we were four people; second, two. Now it's just me."

_I have no idea what I'm doing._

Besides her knowing she was lying through her teeth, the man appeared to be buying every little thing she said; she had no idea the hell she was pulling this off but apparently she was a natural at it, lying…

She shook her head; it had been nothing sort of ten minutes that Lussuria had gone to that boutique thus far, so it must have been logical to assume that if nothing has happened till that very moment then nothing too extravagant would-

**BAM!**

**BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM!**

She instinctively jumped and, after her first shock was over, she tackled the man to the ground, both falling hard.

Gunshots were fired all over the place, breaking glass and wood; what little her turned back to the origin of the fuss allowed her to see, no stray bullets harmed either of them.

"Sir, are you alright?"

The man looked thunderous though; oh no, was she reading the mood wrong again?

He only shoved past her, with his own -standard issue- rifle in hand; she heard him muttering something about embarrassment and how could he ever be protected by a little girl instead of the other way round.

Other than going a little pink to the thought she just did something amazing like saving a person from fire, she just realized he was heading towards…where Lussuria was! And he was supposed to be putting her there for the specific reason of not letting anyone in—how much more an officer of the law…!

"Wait! Wait!" she cried out desperately…

But the man was too wrapped up to hear her; he had a goal in his mind and he had the shop in sight. He moved there with certain, yet careful strides.

Despite his weight, he seemed well-versed in the on-goings of man to man gunfights and he trod with relative easiness to the scene; there, he stood in waiting, like a hunter stocking its prey. He raised the gun…

But nothing happened.

In fact, he was left gawking at the sight he came across: a rather big man with crazy hair and clothes, his sunglasses untouched while all of his opponents, previously armed and dangerous, were now lying on the floor defeated. With nothing but his flexed hands and fists -tighter shut than claws- as weapons, he appeared to have knocked them all out.

"Y-you! Who are you? Identify yourself!" the older man shouted, gun still brandished and ready to shoot.

Lussuria looked at him as he raised an eyebrow. "Mm, Franny-chan~, tell your superior to be on his way, and let's see you measured."

"I asked you a question young man! And did you do all of this?"

"If you mean if I brilliantly disarmed and defeated these men with nothing but my bare fists then yes, you are right~! Now don't annoy us anymore and apprehend these people; we have things we need to do."

Meanwhile, everyone in the shop, other than the two new comers, was watching Lussuria talk and walk about them mesmerized; they wanted to take their eyes off of him and tell him to shove it, but they couldn't. And how could they? He'd just literally saved them.

And nothing but the glass was damaged…!

"Now; seeing the officer already has a job then why don't we make one person in here busy with us, mm~? While the rest testify, we'll get you measured, no?"

There were three employees left for the police officer, and Lussuria was already shooing everyone out.

Even if the older man was about to snap, he figured he'd better make use of this—apprehending two, no three dangerous and armed criminals without so much a back up would definitely make for a medal. Thus, the one who actually did it had to stay away from the station; piece of cake.

He'd take their testimonies and then alter them a bit to look like he was the one who did everything...and he bet he could make sure this man never spoke about this to anyone. He wouldn't want any misgivings with the police, right?

"Officer Vera, will you please take care of this man on your own? I'm certain he wouldn't want to be involved with the police any more than he already is, am I right...?"

"Whatever you say officer~!"

That was enough to make him leave; Lussuria smiled and turned to them. "Now let's make her beautiful! Honestly now, these uniforms work on women the exact opposite way that they work on men: they make them all look worse."

Francesca giggled; if Lussuria said it, it was true.

The ushered woman and the following assistant, entered the small atelier at the back of the boutique; a measure around the man's neck and a pin-cushion attached on his clothes, he put the young woman on a stool.

Then, he proceeded to take her measurements; chest, waist, hip.

"OK, I believe I have everything I need about her on paper." the man said, mainly addressing Lussuria. "So why don't we go look for some of the fabrics and the designs, huh? I have some that will-!"

"Oh no; she's here for her uniform! Franny-chan is getting a promotion in our world so she needs a good Varia uniform to suit her~!"

The assistant deflated; he'd really wanted to show off his newest finds!

"We want two of them; one just like ours, and one more...lady-like, skirts and all. In fact, since she'll be paying for it, she'll decide all about it. I'm here only to give out the hints of the no-nos of fashion. I mean, she can surely make huge blunders; she even wore a tube top once—and everyone knows how out they are for years now!"

"Ah, yes; that's true."

The two men laughed at her, sharing a secret—the secret of good taste...she pouted; they could be more subtle, really! She always loved shopping, it was one of the few reasons she ever got to get out of the house so they didn't have to run this, too.

"Well, if you don't mind, I'd really love to see some new skirt designs!"

"Ah, but yes of course; come here my dear, I have many styles I think will suit you."

He guided her by the shoulders through many shelves and finally stopped her in front of a hanger with many different skirts of all lengths and types. "Mm, we should first decide on a length and colour; what do you want?"

"I think...one of knee-length would be perfect; it is a formal suit after all."

"Oh, then you make the perfect choice; aw, mister Lussuria, you wronged her about having no sense of style."

"Oh dear, I never said that~! Just that she makes mistakes, like even the best of them do; but _I _never do of course."

"O ho-ho." both chuckled in their hands and looked at her good-naturedly.

"Anyhow" she snapped annoyed, seeing the conversation was getting out of the real point of this visit "I would like one just above the knee; a nice black colour for it will be best."

"Ah, but of course, the classic; nothing beats a beautiful elegant black skirt. So, now the colour is decided, too let's see the real big problem: the style of the skirt. A bell-one would be pretty; and an A-line, though you have no real problem with that. Also, a ballerina skirt would be so perfect!"

"No—a pencil skirt;" Lussuria suddenly changed his mind "a high-waist pencil skirt with detachable straps and of course big red buttons here at the top" he said, grabbing Francesca on the ribs "and of course, I want her cheeks to look as toned as possible."

He slapped her butt to make his point; she gave a little yelp. She felt so uncomfortable; gay or not, he still had big hands and enough force to make it feel weird! "I-I thought you weren't supposed to interfere-...!"

"I can only suggest but I thought you wanted the best; well, I **am** the best Franny-chan~!"

"Fine...I actually like it." said she brightly in the end and tried to imagine it in front of the mirror. "So what about the top; a simple button-up red shirt, with those um...more buggy sleeves that become narrow because of the cuffs?"

The two men laughed heartily. "I get it, I have just the thing; you're so amusing Francesca dear."

After he came back with clothes just like the ones she requested -only in different colours-, he handed them to her and pushed her by the shoulders again into a changing room. "But why is a policewoman like her in the Varia though? Isn't it a bit too direct of a connection?"

"Ah, she's not a real policewoman; I dressed her up like that to redirect anyone who might be passing by~!"

"Speaking of which, what happened in here anyway? How did you manage to take them all out like that?"

"Aw, that was a piece of cake, hardly worth mentioning~!"

Yet, he immediately narrated all of his exploits. "After I made sure everything was secure around the place, I went in from the back. There I found those scary-looking men lurking...! But I didn't let them do anything—I snapped their necks and went on in no time."

Both the assistant and Francesca widened their eyes; even from behind the curtain she stared at Lussuria's general direction or where she knew he'd be standing.

Was he crazy? He just admitted _that_ in front of this stranger...?

"But then I saw the rest of the big bad men had also big bad guns with them; so what did I do? I waited till I was certain I could overtake them with nothing but my fists all in one fell swoop~..."

Francesca shook her head; she could imagine him being all so self-important and flamboyant, even if he talked about murder.

"Franny-chan~,"

"Eep!"

"-what are you doing-...?"

As Francesca jumped and fumbled with the shirt, Lussuria laughed into his hand. "Come now dear, girls don't have secrets, don't cover yourself. Just turn around and let momma Lussuria button your skirt up~!"

Blushing, yet infinitely much more comfortable than that one time Xanxus had walked in on her changing -or the three times Bel walked into her bath as she was having one, or the times various Varia members thought the most appropriate moment to announce her something was when she was improper in terms of clothing- she finished buttoning her shirt.

"Great; now let's go outside and see you in the mirror."

As she was ushered somewhere yet again, she didn't fail to notice the subtle change of mood in Salvatore's -the assistant-; well, she couldn't possibly blame him.

"So, as I was saying, after assuring that all of them could be taken out together—and they were three of them, so they had to be huddled close, I attacked!

"And the rest is history...! Oh, don't these look great on her? But I want something with a vest, too; and maybe a tie. I love ties, so elegant. And of course, what about these wonderful pants?"

Speaking so casually after saying something like that...both listeners were mildly freaked out. Yet, they figured in the life of an assassin this type of conversation was normal with his peers or those who knew his occupation. Not to mention, this one, was a bit crazier than it was supposed for a killer.

"Um...though I appreciate your help, I think I shouldn't see more than one outfits; Mammon's said that-."

"I'll buy the extra ones for you" he said, winking. "as a welcome gift."

"Aw, Lussuria you're sweet!" She said it and she meant it; not many people, aka no one, was sweet to her anymore...so she decided to make it up to him. "And I know just the way to get rid of these bodies! My aunt had a friend who was active here and took care of uncomfortable situations...and I guess this is the very definition of one, right?"

"Aw," Lussuria echoed "I'd be eternally grateful—especially if this never reached boss's ears."

She breathed in shock he even had to ask it. "Omerta." she simply said making a motion similar to drinking a shot.

"Omerta."

"Um...all of that is truly beautiful, you two bonding and the like, but can we please focus back on the clothes? What about colours?"

.

.

.

"I have a letter for the boss."

A man she'd never seen before had just handed her an envelope at the door of the "castle": he was wearing something similar yet not quite like the Varia uniform, and boots. His hair was something slicked back -she always hated that style- and his eyes were small and calculating.

He mustn't have been older than forty years of age, with a thick moustache only giving him more years falsely. His equally thick brows were furrowed in an attempt to look serious and business-like.

"When you say boss, you mean...?:

"He means Xanxus, duh." Squalo snapped from behind her. "She's new." he continued to the older man, as if Francesca was the one who was intruding.

"Anyway, give your name and the envelope to me; I'll make sure he gets them."

"Oh no, I have to deliver this in person. It's an order from the Ninth; it has to do with helping the vice-captain."

Immediately, Squalo's whole demeanour changed. "VOOOOOOOI! Why don't you say it's important already? Fine, you may come in but give me the damn letter; it'll be better for you."

Even if he originally hesitated, he handed it over; they simultaneously started walking to Xanxus' room, leaving her behind to close the door.

"Hey! What's going on?"

She strived to catch up to them. "And who is this man that I'm supposed to know but never met?" she demanded to know.

Though said man was standing right next to them –Squalo was in the middle of the three-man company-, she preferred to actually point at him with her finger and not even address him; her manners started to suffer the longer she stayed with them, but she never noticed.

"He's a low-ranking Varia member."

She stared. "Wait...There are _**more**_?"

"VOOOOOI! What do you mean by that—why are you asking as if we're animals going extinct?"

_-Ooh, nice metaphor_, the girl thought not quite so guiltily.-

"Of course there are more! They are many more! But here only live the ones who have the highest rank...and want to live here."

"Right, bringing rank up, who is this vice-captain he spoke of? I thought you were-!"

"I am the commander, moron. There is another man who has the position of vice captain, called Ottabio; he's the second in command."

"So you're...third?"

"Yes."

That came as a shock to the woman, a real shock; so all this time there were other Varia members? And even one who was higher ranking than Squalo –but apparently had no interest in staying with the rest of them?

What the actual hell? Her whole life with them had been a lie!

They took a right and then a left; now she was the one leading them, being able to navigate herself freely. She was first because she was thinking and she used to do that when she thought: she'd want to somehow isolate herself from the rest. And this worked the same way.

Usually she'd casually leave them to their devices while she'd be gone to be immersed in hers but now she couldn't help it, she just had to know what the hell was happening.

She recognized her boss's door and jogged to it; she burst it open.

"We have an important mission from the Ninth!" she announced to him after she dodged his fire ball with the utmost grace.

He perked up. She continued the same way, before the others reached her. "Ottabio apparently needs help!"

"The fuck d'you say?"

"I said: Ottabio needs your help; a low-ranking Varia member –some nobody- just brought us a letter for you."

As soon as she'd said that, the two men appeared next to her, one on the left and one on the right. "And here it is; give it to him boy." she finished, snapping her fingers together imperatively.

Both Squalo and the newcomer stared at her. "Oh right, sorry; Squalo has it. Commander, if you'll do the honours..."

Both men looked at her again in the same "what the fuck is wrong with you" way.

"Am I gonna wait for long scum?"

"VOOOOOOOOI! Is that all you have to say? Listen to her! What's up with her tone huh?"

She shrugged truly indifferent, almost mimicking Xanxus' trademark devil-may-care gesture; in fact, he'd done it now, too and they looked nearly synchronized. "I outrank this person;" she showed him with her index finger again "and to you I spoke more than civilly I believe."

"VOOOOOOOO! Shitty boss, just say something!"

"She's fucking right so fucking give me the fucking envelope now!"

Though the "extra" didn't understand why suddenly both scrambled around, trying to do as he said the fastest they could, these two knew: when Xanxus was swearing too much, he was about to throw a hissy fit.

So they hurried, in order not to taste his wrath.

As he skimmed the letter, they could all see his poker face slowly ebbing away: his brows now knotted, his mouth an indicator of deep thinking, he must have been deciding his answer. And then he crumbled the paper with his fist; slowly, his flame emerged and set it on fire!

"VOOOOOOOI! What the hell are you doing, crazy boss? How are we supposed to-?"

He threw a pillow –in other words whatever he found more conveniently- at Squalo and stared at the messenger.

"Tell him we'll go."

He nodded and immediately turned tail and left.

"What is it that Nono wants us for and it's so urgent?" Squalo asked when he made sure the other man was long gone.

Xanxus stared first at Squalo but then at Francesca. She fidgeted. "What?"

"You're gonna stay here for long?" Squalo answered in Xanxus' stead.

She deflated. "Why shouldn't I?" she asked pouty. "Aren't I an actual member of the Varia, too now...?"

"Not yet! And you can't just-!"

"Let her stay." Xanxus spoke suddenly, while an unreadable smirk started spreading all over his face...

And suddenly she didn't want to stay any more. But, oh well, she had to come in terms with him at some point; she greeted her teeth and expected the worst.

"We're going on a vacation..."

Both had the same lame response: "Huh?"

"A different kind of the one you're thinking."

Squalo smirked; he might had no idea what Xanxus was talking about, but he knew it would be his kind of thing while Francesca simply grew even more suspicious—this had no doubt to do with killing but she preferred not to delve further into it.

"Should I pack your medicine...?"

Xanxus gave a strange laugh. "Why not? Make sure you have medicine for three days; us two are going together."  
>He turned to Squalo, suddenly business-like. "You and the rest go alone. You'll receive your orders later; now go and make sure you're all ready to leave by nightfall."<p>

He nodded and disappeared himself.

So then, there they were the two of them with Francesca left staring at the boss; he raised an eyebrow in question but he didn't seem all that annoyed by her presence-_yet_ anyhow. She started to say something...but stopped. She did it again; then she started playing with her thumbs, stealing glances at her boss, seeing him watching her with his head resting on his hand, cocked to the side.

"Speak. Now."

"...well, I was just wondering; since now I am an official Varia member and everything even though I haven't been made one formally, can I still wear my Varia uniform when we go pretty please?"

That inexplicable smirk surfaced again; _he almost looks sexy like that_, she thought for a split second but then dismissed it immediately—when she tried to figure out what it could mean for her.

"Do you want to wear it?"

"Yeah..."

He shrugged. "Then do. But wear the skirt; you're a woman after all."

Her aunt would be turning in her grave if she could hear him now, she was certain...! But what did she care? She got to wear the uniform and that meant she got what she wanted and from none other than the one person who never seemed to be willing to let her do anything. To her, this was a success for her as a person and not as a woman.

After all, if it were the second he'd let her have her way every single time she had started crying; but he never did.

She beamed at him and disappeared behind the door herself, even closing it as she went...he then stood up himself.

He had to get ready.

This was no easy task the Ninth –he swore never to call him father again- appointed them: rumours that the island Ottabio was in care of –Mare Diablo, a man-made island the Vongola bought from the state that wanted to make it into a resort— would be attacked, leaked. And now he had to go and make sure the attack was diverted or repelled.

He was set to leave in the evening; that gave the window of a day –till they arrived at their destination- for an attack to take place. He hoped that wasn't the case, even though in any other situation that would have been better, because once an island was occupied, it was difficult to retake it.

Especially if all the hostages had indeed been non-fighting members of the family and allied families and the security was minimum.

And how in earth did Ottabio let that happen on the first place? He should know better than anyone else that when important non-fighters gather, strong fighters of their enemies are meant to strike. Did he think this would be any different or did he have his reasons? He would ask him once he saw him. He had a lot of things to ask him anyway, such as: how the actual fuck did he manage to let Squalo and the rest off the hook after all they'd done. It would be an interesting story to tell—maybe he should thank him, in his own way of course, for everything.

Hum...

He changed into new clothes, even if they were essentially the same, and turned to his guns; he still wasn't too able to wield them in their full strength but Francesca had told him more than sixty percent of his previous vigour had returned to his flame meaning it would be enough if he had to engage in battle.

She'd also notified him on the effect of the drugs on his body–he was looking very well, but they also did some damage, like all drugs do: he could handle the heat of a battle only for about an hour before he exhausted himself - when she said "heat" she meant it; she only talked about battles with flames -. She'd advised him to do trial fights in order to increase the number to an hour and a half, but he hadn't been listening.

Now he thought he should have.

An hour later, marking the time as five in the afternoon, there was a knock on the door.

He'd said "Enter" almost immediately, which only helped to prove further to himself he was a little distracted; damn this letter all of the sudden!

"I'm ready and everything is in order boss; where should I wait for you?"

"I'm ready." he replied, glimpsing at the guns with the edge of his eyes. "We'll leave together in a minute."

She caught his eyes; she knew what he was thinking. "You should take them." she simply said and though he never excused her, she stood outside his room, with her back turned to him, as if leaving him to his privacy.

He would never do that for her, he mused entertained but satisfied. He did as she advised though; if his doctor was telling him to use them, then he was strong enough. He only had to be careful.

Tch, listen to him, how could he think like that about himself? Careful? As if; he wasn't some breakable doll! What the hell was he thinking? So he grabbed the guns; they felt so familiar in his hands. He hadn't used them for the longest of times, yet they still felt like they could burn at the slightest of his touches. In fact, he had held them many times since he woke up for maintenance, but never for any real use. But he knew that in the moment he grabbed them and strapped them to his hip, he felt complete again.

Distantly, he blamed the girl for his going soft as far as his own self was concerned and since he wasn't one to actually care about not blaming the wrong person, he did it; when he went outside, too the first thing to do was mess with – in other words grab - her hair.

And in his book all women hated to have their hair messed with.

"Ouch!"

The pulling of her scalp came as a big surprise—especially since she had them all in a neat bun at the top of her head, making it so much easier to pull on most of them at the same time.

"What was that for?"

He glared; she shut it. They started walking...

And then he actually noticed what she was wearing: a black skirt—with a higher waist than most of the women he ever knew had, with suspenders and a red shirt underneath. She also wore a cravat? That was weird. And she had the Varia emblem sewn on her skirt—that or it was a pin. Was she actually...well-dressed?

He raised an eyebrow. "Lussuria picked this out, right?"

"Yes."

The Italian good sense of fashion inside him relaxed. "Figures."

She seemed hurt but didn't say anything about it. She opted for a better topic. "Where are we going though?"

He smirked. "You shouldn't have worn heels. Boats rock a lot."

She paled. Did he say _boat_? As in one that runs in water? She shook her head like crazy. "Wh-wh-what? I'm afraid of boats—can't we go by any other mean of transport?"

"No."

Why, he seemed to enjoy it! She fumed - that selfish, sadistic bastard! - but spoke nothing out loud for her own good.

Yet, as they were about to leave the mansion-castle, they saw another man approaching, the car that brought him just parked outside of the yard.

"Master Xanxus, we have" his breath caught in his throat from the running; he supported himself on his knees "urgent news! The island—"

He took a last deep breath to recover completely. "The island has already been overtaken; they are all taken hostages!"

And what he'd "feared" had just been reported that happened; he resisted the urge to roll his eyes.

"Well isn't that just great? Now we'll get to join the fight, too..." he simply said, as a very sadistic and wistful grin emerged.

Francesca turned to him wondered. When he didn't go into the trouble of explaining anything further to her right then and there, she realised he wouldn't be doing it at any length of time. So she only shrugged and moved after him. And wished she'd never be swept into the heat of battle, for no reason whatsoever.

She watched him handing a note to the man who'd just told him of the latest news and then they both moved to the parking area of the Headquarters to get their own vehicle...

.

.

They'd used a rather inconspicuous car to arrive at their destination, which was the harbour. All the while, she'd been wishing something like a storm happens or anything of the sort to make it impossible for them to travel by sea...only to remember this was Xanxus she was dealing with: storm or not he'd still make her go by boat. So she spent the remaining time wishing for the best weather possible.

Luckily, the sea was calm and no strong wind made its appearance; given they'd be travelling with something that runs on oil thus empowered on its own, the less wind, the better for their safety. She only hoped she wouldn't go overboard; he was so mean he could actually leave her in the water. Not that she minded; she loved the sea. She just hated any floating means of transport.

What stroke as odd to her though was the fact even when they were on the boat - a large, luxurious one to that -, he didn't speak a single word—not to scare, taunt or make fun of her. Curious.

The boat ride itself was long and torturous; she felt proud though because nothing made her lose her food! Still, she was ever so worried every single time it went up and down—twice she yelped surprised and grabbed on to Xanxus' arm...something that was quite weird for her to do, considering she was positively scared of him, too and even weirder to see he didn't react. He didn't even try to push her away; he just let her squeeze him for those fleeting moments, maybe burry her face on his sleeve, and then release him without his interjection.

It didn't seem like he noticed her even. Something was very wrong with him.

"Um...boss?"

When her question was met with silence, she probed again. "Whom are we going to meet?"

"...Ottabio."

"Are we getting close?"

"Yes."

* * *

><p><strong>AN**: Le end~!

Yes, this was a very transitional chapter but, to make up for it, all sorts of shit are going down in the next. For real! Also, if anyone is wondering who is Ottabio then he's from an extra (novel I think) called X-bullet. There some shit went down, too and since it's not so popular or easy to find I thought I should take advantage of it. Oh my, what a long note. Oh well. Thank you for reading thus far~! Please leave a review if you enjoyed!


	10. Captive and bound

**A/N**: Update~! Yes, it is one! I know, it's almost too soon, right? E he he, my beta, **Orihara Izaya** is wonderful!

* * *

><p>When her question was met with silence, she probed again. "Whom are we going to meet?"<p>

"...Ottabio."

"Are we getting close?"

"Yes."

She did not speak again till they arrived at their destination. She could see there was something very wrong with Xanxus so she decided not to push her luck any further tonight and simply sat there looking serious.

When they did reach shore and she saw the place where they were to be guided, she gaped. It was...beautiful, but also historic! She knew of this place from one of her aunt's books! It was a little island, used significantly in the World War II and then it fell off the grid...so that was why. The mafia bought it.

Heh! A rather good investment if anyone wanted her opinion, which of course they didn't, not in this crowd. She sighed disappointed but somehow used to it. At least now she knew if anyone asked her anything they truly valued her thoughts about it or else they wouldn't even bother talking to her.

While she was looking around gobsmacked though, she failed to notice Xanxus was not by her side—or should she say, _she_'d left his side by now. He was...where was he? She looked around alerted fearing the worst if she was found wandering aimlessly around away from the boss. Yet, as she looked back, she saw Xanxus catching a man from the hair and wave him over.

_Ouch_, was her first thought and her heart went out to him. He'd done it to her not a while ago and seeing it on another person...! It looked more painful than it might have been. But as she drew closer to the pair, she started making out the stranger: he was a man of thirty or maybe a bit older, with unruly dirty blond hair. He had glasses covering his eyes and he was-...somehow familiar to her.

But why? She racked her brains but she couldn't make the immediate connection. So she opted to simply stare at him till she got a flash.

"Is there something wrong with me Francesca?"

Francesca jumped. "Huh?" the man she was so stubbornly looking at just spoke to her! That gave her a fright...! "N-no, why would you say that?" she replied more coolly, as she blushed by her own stupidity.

"Your gaze seemed to be transfixed on me."

"Begging your pardon, you just look sort of familiar...wait a minute, did you call me by my name?" she lit up! If he remembered her than maybe he could shed some light on this! "So we have met before!" she exclaimed thrilled as she struck her punch on her other palm.

The man laughed. "Indeed, I had met you at the party not too long ago." He replied good-naturedly and smiled. "But dear me, I mustn't have made quite the impression if you do not even recall my name. I'm Ottabio."

"The man we came here to help." she added thoughtful almost immediately.

He nodded, smiled and turned to go after Xanxus who was already going inside the makeshift camp to take charge.

Yet, there was something not quite right about all these...she couldn't place it, but she knew there was something very fishy going on. She wasn't sure why but she felt this man was a dangerous one and a liar. He was lying to her about something. He couldn't _not_ be who he said he was, or else Xanxus would have snapped his neck when he had the chance. He also knew her by name thus he wasn't lying about knowing her either.

Then what was it? Could it be about the manner of their meeting? If so, why? She couldn't quite put it in words but she knew if she'd met him so recently for the first time, she'd definitely remember him.

She huffed annoyed she couldn't figure this out. Pouting, she followed both inside this odd tent they set up and tried to spot Xanxus so she could go sit next to him. If he was feeling charitable enough. Inwardly, she screamed; how her life had become nothing but a parody was still beyond her.

.

.

A little after an hour, the boss stood up decided to go fight – he had allowed her to remain by his side so long she provided air and food for him – and she watched him idly. She wouldn't be going with him anyway, she knew that. She wasn't "of use" as both Ottabio and Xanxus had put it – only one did so politer than the other –. And she didn't argue with that; she wasn't made for the heat of battle, she knew, but it still stung to have someone just throw it in her face.

Undoubtedly, Ottabio made everything easy for her, by giving her something else to do; something like doctor duty for the upcoming wounded, but there was still something bugging her about him. Behind all of his good manners, she felt something creeping underneath, something sinister.

Something untrustworthy.

Considering she felt more at ease and safe with _Xanxus_ who was a proven psychopath **and** the fact she was certain her Stockholm syndrome wasn't _that_ developed, she was almost positive there was something very wrong with the man who was always smiling at her. She means, honestly, the boss threw her stuff, chucked fireballs at her and pulled on her hair. If she was more at peace with him than the guy who did her a favour there was something off with the guy, not her. Because she always felt better at Nono's presence at any given time.

Still pouting, trying to figure out why he would lie and how it served him, she felt a strong connection with Nono. She felt she didn't bring up his name in her line of thought for no reason. Her answer was somewhere between him lying about when and where he met her and Nono...

And then, like a light turning on in her head, it all came back to her. Her eyes became wider, her throat felt dry and her breath was caught. She could clearly see it, like it was only yesterday.

_**Flashback, eight years ago...**_

Francesca had woken up in the middle of the night because of another nightmare: this once was the pair of Cervello who had convinced Nono to take her from her family. They'd come to the house to live with her. She'd been so averse to the mere thought, she jolted awake when the dream had only started!

So, she descended the big staircase to do the only thing that relaxed her: go to the kitchen and drink hot chocolate! Its silk touch and the milky taste always made her heart flutter content…But, as she was soundlessly making her way to the desired place, she heard voices coming from the living room; a little light was on**, **too making everything all the more exciting for her young overactive mind.

She approached, still hidden in the shadows, and looked into the large room; three people: her aunt, Nono, and another man about twenty-twenty five years old, were conversing vividly.

"But sir, I insist! We mustn't allow him the chance to wake up!"

Suddenly, the leader of the Vongola looked many, many years older. He rubbed his eyes tired and sighed. "Are you asking me to murder my own son, Ottabio?"

"We both know he's not your real son sir..."

"That doesn't change the fact I raised him...please don't ask me that."

Her aunt was only watching them argue apathetically, but Francesca could see the worry in her eyes.

"I'm only asking you to eliminate a very much active threat sir; I believe that is every boss's duty, no matter who the threat is."

"Are you implying I am a bad boss...?"

"No sir, the exact opposite; so far you've been exemplary and we all make mistakes. But should this be the one to make...?"

"I know you have a fair point. But I just cannot-...he is my son, no matter what. I would never kill my own son."

"But-...what do _you_ think misses?"

Her aunt suddenly seemed thoughtful—a good cover up for her surprise, Francesca knew. She put her hand on her chin and pretended to be making up her mind –pretended because when her aunt took the "thinking" pose it meant the exact opposite: she'd already decided. "I think I want him alive."

The young man with the glasses resented the turn of events. "Why?" he asked and his cool demeanour cracked a little, showing some of his true feelings. Francesca thought it scary how he could mask his real sentiments so well.

"I want to study him; so long in the ice and hasn't died? He's news for my research."

Ottabio seemed to swear under his breath by the look he was having and just stood up. "I understand sir, madam; you cannot kill him. I shall respect your decision and now be excused…"

Both nodded affirmatively and he was allowed to go. But before he does, he ran into the scrambling girl, fighting to avoid him but failing. "And who might you be little girl?" he asked kindly with a fake but very warm smile.

It chilled her instead. "I-I'm Francesca Tutsi…"

"Ah, misses Tutsi's niece. Pleased to make an acquaintance with you young lady." He continued, his smile never fading.

She nodded half-heartedly and let him pass…she watched as he walked to the door and left the house; she could swear he looked back at her when she wasn't looking. Just a second later, Nono appeared out of nowhere with her aunt who locked her in a stifling embrace. "Did you have to wake up now of all times dear?"

_**End of flashback…**_

So he was…trying to get Xanxus killed whence he was in the ice. And if it were up to him, her boss wouldn't even exist anymore. The man she shared all her secrets with during her adolescent and early adult years wouldn't be there if Ottabio could help it. And she would have probably gone…mad it that was the case.

Her eyes were almost too wide to be true and her expression of surprise and realization almost comical. But if he'd managed to make Nono keep quiet about this and he was still Xanxus' vice captain who he had no idea of his true intentions – and how could he anyway – then didn't that mean he shouldn't be underestimated? If she spoke openly then he'd probably get her killed or at best away from her boss.

What if he tried to do anything funny to him? The rest of the special Varia were too far away – they were at a base just before the island they were supposed to retake while Squalo and the rest headed straight for Mare Diablo – to be of any help and she was the only one with the knowledge necessary.

She felt helpless. _What would Mammon do?_ She questioned herself, trying to be as sly and inconspicuous as she could. After all, if she were to survive in a real mafia world, she'd have to be smooth...even though she had no idea how.

But then, the chance she was waiting for came; she had no idea how long she'd been standing out there but it felt like only moments later to her when she saw Ottabio leaving the tent he had entered with Xanxus...and the boss was still inside. After precariously checking left and right to make sure the man with the glasses wasn't coming back too soon, she ran for it.

"Boss," she asked, her head protruding "can I talk to you in private for a bit?"

He looked at her murderously. "What d'you mean, bitch? What about my medicine?"

"Oh shit, yes; I forgot!" she exclaimed slapping her forehead, ignoring the look he gave her when she actually swore.

And she swore, because she was inwardly cursing herself—now her chance would be gone...! But then she remembered: she had the shots with her! She exhaled relieved and moved to his side immediately. "Here they are boss."

She gave the serums but he gave her one more raised eyebrow. Previously _he_ was acting weird something that would warrant her erratic behaviour before but why was she so fidgety _now?_ She wouldn't stop looking around like a paranoid person, she would lose her footing all too often and she wouldn't be able to give him the serum on her own even if her life depended on it.

And when she came close to him, he almost slapped her away till he heard her:

"Listen to me; I don't think I have much time till he returns;" whispering in his ear as she was leaning over him, massaging his shoulders. "Ottabio is not who he says he is. He isn't your right hand or as loyal as he wants to depict himself."

She started picking it up while she was nodding the order of the serums he was consuming. "He was trying to get you killed when you were first encapsulated in the ice. I remember him talking to the Ninth about it!"

She then hurriedly finished him up with the rest of the supplementary medicine and slapped his back. "You're ready boss." she said cheerfully, hoping everything would work out for the best.

But what she didn't under any circumstances want to hear, she heard: "...what the fuck did you just say?"

Of course, that was just her luck. Could it get any worse—no wait, she never thought it! No, nope she did not! It was a rule: the moment you think or say that things can't get worse, then it happens. So no, she didn't even think it...

But she still had to answer. Fuck. "You heard me the first time..." she said a little wary as she glanced to the man she talked about to her boss.

But that was the wrong thing to say: Xanxus grabbed her arm and shoved her. "Don't talk to me like that, bitch! Do you understand?"

She nodded rapidly, tears in her eyes. Why was she even trying to help him after all? He was treating her like shit and like a masochist, she not only put up with it, she tried to save his life!

And for what? More abuse and torture? She was stupid, she should have let him to his fate, and maybe she'd get to watch him as he died as compensation for all the terrible things he'd ever done to her and her aunt...

"Good; now repeat what you've just said in front of him, too..."

She desperately shook her head in a "no" gesture, but he didn't care, nor had he released her yet. "I said, speak!"

And with that she found herself tossed in front of Ottabio's feet. Well, at least he let go of her hair...! She looked up and saw the older man looking at her with an ominous look, masked by a pretentious, unaware grin. "Alright" she said and felt a lump at her throat. "I have no problem saying it to his face as well…" she continued getting up while dusting herself down.

She stood ramrod straight and looked the older man right in the eye. "I only informed my boss of your true nature: you're a traitorous bastard and you want him dead."

She'd wanted to see Xanxus' reaction so badly, but she knew she shouldn't break eye contact with this man; she felt like she was watching a snake: if she looked the other way, then he would strike and bite her with all his venom! Just like a viper…

So she watched him. Surprisingly, his poker face never waned and nothing but the utmost shock was all that was ever shown on his face. What his thoughts were, she could guess though: various scenarios of how he should have her killed and make it look like an accident.

She swallowed with difficulty, but didn't stop the staring contest.

"I do not understand...why would you say such a thing Francesca? You barely know me…" he said, pretending to be actually hurt. He wasn't very dramatic about it, too—he was just enough to make him look like he was the one to be right.

She snorted. "Exactly; I have no reason to want you dead or anything. I am only speaking the truth." Finally, she decided to try appealing to her boss. "Please, believe me."

He looked at her seriously…maybe he was actually considering it!

But then, of course, Ottabio had to intervene: he cleared his throat, claiming all the attention for himself, and snapped Xanxus away from her begging eyes. "I know what this is about." he said solemnly, almost like he could see some greater truth none else could. "Nono has put you up to this. He wants Xanxus weakened, robbed of his allies, thus ordered you to make him doubt me."

Oh no, why did he have to bring up the boss's father? Now he would only see red and he'd never see reason…! Well, thinking about it, it sort of served him thus it was no strange thing he said it. Why couldn't she be fluent in words like him? "What? No! It was you who-!"

"No, I get it; you serve Xanxus, but Nono is your boss's boss after all. Who could ever disobey him? And I've seen him assert himself…he is a force to be reckoned with. You were scared or compelled into it, were you not?"

"No! _You_ are the one who-!"

"Ah yes, it's all clear now; you can't help it. Boss, what do you say?"

She was about to protest once more, but the moment he drew Xanxus into the conversation she stopped; last thing she wanted to do, was to anger him further. No, she needed him on her side, something that didn't seem at all possible thanks to that man's silver fucking tongue, and satisfied. And it would be achievable if she only shut it.

Besides, no matter what she said, Ottabio turned it against her. So no point in talking aimlessly...so she braced herself for her answer.

As if she heard it all in slow motion, she knew what he'd say before he did it: "I see; take her away... once we arrive at the island, she'll be formally imprisoned."

She shut her eyes and after a long time, she felt real tears roll down her cheeks; he didn't believe her. She lost this battle of wits and tongues, even though she was the one who was right! She tried to save her boss and he rewards her with shackles? Heh, what else could she expect the way she did it, really?

As some person she'd never seen before came and bound her wrists, she scoffed and smiled between her few tears. She should have made a plan of action, not just rush in and accuse someone Xanxus apparently trusted.

The man secured her binds and shoved her forward, to move, to leave the tent; as she unconsciously did as she was told, being dragged and pushed around every now and then, she was left with nothing but her thoughts and her pretty clothes. She'd been so proud to wear the uniform when he'd announced the mission—she'd been so happy when he told her it was alright to put it on...

But now she feels annoyed by the very thought. Someone had torn away her Varia badge of her skirt anyway, so she was just a well dressed woman on a shore. Nothing more. Did they ever feel like she was a part of the squad—did she ever feel like she actually belonged? No, they never made her feel welcome. Well, all except Lussuria and Levi but she was positive the last person was talked into it by the others so she abhors them on purpose.

But what use was it, thinking of all these things? She would probably be somehow mysteriously killed now that her allegiance lay with the ninth as Xanxus thinks. He will find a way to dispose of her forever, or just leave Ottabio to do it for him. If that happened though, there would be an actual chance she'd live.

Nah, no; he'd be in a too dangerous a place not to directly obey the short tempered man. So...that was it? She'd die because she was stupid enough to try and warn Xanxus against a threat at his life? In fact, what possessed her to do such a thing on the first place? He was her jailer, her oppressor; her Stockholm syndrome was stronger than she thought after all—he wasn't even being good to her and she was defending him...!

She shook her head, trying to banish such thoughts; she tried to make happy ones instead. But all she got in return was a foul circle, running and running around in her own mind, trapping the same subject of mental conversation: what the hell is wrong with you Francesca, trying to save Xanxus? You could have been freed! Maybe you inwardly don't want to be freed because then whom would you have to blame for your life sucking as bad as it does other than you?

None. You'd be the sole person responsible for your own shit and, after so many years letting people make your decisions for you, you're just used and more comfortable even to be bullied around! Well done girl, well done indeed! Oh mother must be so proud if she knew what you were thinking! Her little angel finally became the perfect human doll for her to control better. Way to go...!

She had no sense of the passage of time; how long had she been in that weird and dark tent? An hour or two? Maybe just minutes? Or has it been a day already...? Yeah, she'd wish! It was probably five minutes later and she'd get to have countless of those for the time being, as it seemed...

She heard voices and shouts all around her; she had no idea what was going on but due to the commotion outside it was safe for her to assume something either too good or too bad was happening around her. She felt so empty though, she didn't seem to care one bit what might have been transpiring. She was only looking lifelessly at the side of the tent they had her confined in, bound and sorrowful.

She then swore to herself, after she made a complete idiot of her annoying Stockholm Syndrome, she would never be bullied ever again, no matter how strong or intimidating her foe was. After all, though she may not admit it to herself yet, it felt good speaking her own goddamn mind, be damned the consequences. It was...liberating. She felt strong in an entirely different account.

And even Xanxus' violent tantrum didn't take away from that: the fact she spoke freely without regard. Because, after all, she was only speaking the truth. And, as her aunt used to say, the truth will out! Either we like it or not...

Ottabio's days were numbered then...and if not, at least she knew Xanxus would too pay for not believing in her. If not with his life, then certainly with his blood. And all things considered, she deserved to be a vindictive at his point.

"Francesca, the island has been retaken; you are to be moved there where the boss will be to keep an eye on you." another random person she'd never seen before announced as he tried to usher her forward.

Once more, she did as she was told, looking lifeless still. But, this once, her mind was just reeling with the possibilities of what could and may happen now that Ottabio is still her boss's trustee. Would he kill him in his sleep? Would he try a coup just like Xanxus did, now that they are on his island? Would she, in the end, enjoy seeing it...?

Her first, immediate response to that was: Yes.

They shoved her in a small boat where barely fitted five people at the same time; yet, they were three in total, Xanxus, Ottabio and her, thus some space remained for her to be a little stretched out.

"What's with the apathetic stare?" the ever-pissed boss of hers asked when he saw her looking like a rag doll: eyes unmoving and a bit creepy.

"I have nothing left to be passionate for." she replied shrugging but continued anyway. "You'll probably see fit to kill me in the end and I'll wrongfully die because Ottabio here could talk his way out of punishment even if he were caught with his hand in the cookie jar. I have no chance against a man like that and, quite frankly, I'm sick of worrying about my life these past few months. So I say, to hell with it. Come what may."

Both men looked at her in a different way, but in the same context: "What the hell is wrong with you?"

"That is an awfully long answer for such a small question Francesca."

"And look at all the fucks I give." she snapped in the same apathetic way she seemed to be saying everything the last few minutes.

Xanxus had another opinion though: before Ottabio's second response, he laughed out loud, almost heartily. "Who would have thought the prospect of death would make you such a little runt? You keep amusing me like that and you might not die after all."

"I'd _rather_ die..." she said with less volume but enough poise to make both men listen to her.

One could swear Ottabio was about to facepalm. "You know, I should just push you over right now" Xanxus said, going to her; he took her by the collar of her shirt "and no one would be able to say anything about how you accidentally drowned..."

"I know..." she simply replied, never losing her disinterested tone, her casual look.

The two people, she and the anger management-challenged youth, kept looking at each other: she wouldn't let go of her new-found apathy and he wouldn't let go of her shirt. Ottabio looked like he wanted to interfere, but he was too afraid Xanxus would probably push _**him**_ over the edge because at least he could swim seeing he wasn't bound...but he had no intention of drenching his clothes. He loved this uniform.

Finally, the "duel" of stubbornness was over and it was obvious she had won, since she was still on the craft; unable to accept defeat though, Xanxus opted for another kind of approach: he severed her confines - drawing some blood there, too - and pushed her on her stomach.

"From now on, and at least until the moment Nono come looking for you, you will not see the light of day again." he simply ordered, blindfolding her.

Inwardly, she smiled. She somehow managed to escape with her life intact and a promise of her keeping it long enough to wallow in adequate self-pity...all things considered, this was a great turn of events!

"Ottabio, she's all yours to treat however you like." he only said, when he realised not only was she not struggling with the blindfold but she was too calm for his taste. He actually started thinking she was doing it purposefully.

So he handed her over to Ottabio whom she obviously did not like at all and let that be a lesson to her. He sat back in his seat, leaving her blindfolded and helpless on the floor of the small boat, at Ottabio's feet. And he'd see what things would lead up to...

Sometime later, they finally arrived at the Mare Diablo...she was immediately transported somewhere below, she was certain; though there weren't any stairs, she could understand the descent while even the air changed: it became cooler, denser and more...mouldy when it came to the scent.

So she was guided somewhere dark, cool and dry probably at some sort of dungeon of the man-made island. She could feel her own temperature dropping the deeper they went, and she didn't like it one bit. Just how long would she spent down there? Her nose had automatically curled up in distaste but other than that, she kept quiet about her problems and thoughts.

She also knew it was neither Ottabio nor Xanxus pushing her around because there was no way they'd lower themselves to such a menial task; not to mention the pushing was too gentle to be the boss yet too firm to be the snake.

Yet, from where they left her - she could swear they shoved her in the most remote location of the goddamn house – she could easily hear the trampling of feet and the shout of people and the whimpers of the hostages. They made no sense to her, meaning she couldn't possibly make out their words, but she definitely knew there was something going on.

She sneezed!

Oh great, the new environment was getting to her already... but then something unexpected happened: she heard footsteps and they weren't moving away, nor a level or two above her; instead, they were steadily approaching her with purpose. She'd bet all she had on her -which was a useless now due to her blindfold watch and a silver ring- that was Ottabio.

And a minute later, she was assured; the silk voice of the man was heard, feeling like it was next to her, speaking in something above a whisper: "You are a smart girl Francesca...no need to make a big deal out of nothing. You heard him, you are mine now. So why don't we try to make a deal?"

She kept silent, but her good ear was now turned to him, so he knew he had her full attention. She could see him grinning like a self-serving idiot besides the blindfold.

"I kill him, and you help me do it..."

She tensed, he could see her: every muscle on her shoulders twitched while she sat more fully. "I do not mean for you to take an active part, of course...but you could be the one to trick him. Not now, certainly, but maybe later. He'd always been a little...willing to be lead on by women."

_Tch, is he serious? Since when Xanxus of all people is lead around by women consciously_, she thought a little annoyed that never seemed to be the case with her if he was actually right.

"So, if you agree to work with me, on the contrary of him, I am willing to give you all the respect and riches he has denied from you—either material or mental ones."

"But he's my boss..."

"Ah dear, you only say that because you are too pure at heart and apparently, a little dependent. I will teach you how to be _**in**_dependent. You will be the master of your own self and you will not have to put up with his immeasurable anger and self-esteem issues. After all, it isn't your fault if he can't accept the fact his blood isn't Vongola."

He waited a moment, and only then did he go in for the kill. "What say you, young, innocent Francesca Tutsi, niece of the late Lucretia Tutsi?"

She was thoughtful, as much as she could be seen; her frown was evident and her shoulders were drooping forward and her hand was on her chin. She was deciding, he realised and gave her all the space she'd need, by taking a step back. He watched her expressions change and saw the transition of her feelings...he thought this was actually going to work!

"So...you're telling me I should betray Xanxus, my current annoying, over-demanding, violent and unpredictable boss, who wears his emotions on his sleeve to follow you, a fair, silver-tongued, calm, back-stabbing boss that I can never know what he's thinking; hum...I think I'll take the one who's at least man enough to tell me he thinks I'm a gullible idiot to my face instead of trying to manipulate me about it."

He didn't express his rage in words, no; he didn't even hit her, like she thought he would. No, no, he only _stood_ there in his silence and she could almost feel the heat of his anger, his great aversion to the thought he'd been shot down again by another Tutsi! After all, the same thing with her aunt happened: she didn't side with him and allowed Xanxus to live.

Why was everyone so hell-bent on allowing such a man to...keep on living anyway? There was nothing, and he meant nothing special about him!

"He's just a spoiled brat with all kinds of issues! He's hurt more people than he's helped -and even that was by accident- and he constantly treats others like dirt on his shoes! Yet he somehow manages to...have everyone on his side? Even those he abuses? Why?"

"If you're asking me, I have nothing like that on my mind. I simply dislike you more than I dislike him. You scare me but in a much different way that he does. He has powers which you know when are coming for you. With you, it's another story. So I just like you less."

She shrugged in the end, making her point; either the point she made was satisfactory or not, she didn't quite care. In fact, she started believing she cared for but a handful of things from now on; on one hand, if her innocence was proven in the end then she'd get to be mean without a real problem from her part. If her innocence was never proven, on the other hand, she could easily be a mean bitch to them without the tiniest regret. What could they do to her that would be worse than this anyway...?

She heard him, Ottabio, stomping away and only then did she realise he'd been staring at all this while. She snorted a bit of laughter and shook her head. Maybe being a total bitch would work better than being kind after all—it seemed to work on Xanxus earlier anyway!

Her smile could not be contained.

Yet, the time passed and she was losing all awareness of it; had it been a day? Had it been hours since she'd been down there? She knew it couldn't have been more than half a day, since the flow of time when you're alone seems to slow down not the other way round so she could only doubt the amount of hours. She assumed it's been five, but she might have been mistaken.

She hoped she wasn't, because she was too tired and moody already. Her moodiness was evident by the fact she was thinking and thinking over and over her decision not to follow Ottabio in her head. Should she have somehow tried to trick him by making him think she was on his side so that she was released at the very least?

Did she even make the right choice not to succumb to his schemes? What did Xanxus offer her after all? Abuse: verbal, mental and physical; what would he offer her? A nice working environment where, even if it weren't true, they'd pretend to value her and her opinion. Only she'd never be anything more than a tool. She'd be a tool anyway, she knew, but at least Xanxus makes her know her place; Ottabio would have been sneakier and she always hated that sort of person.

No, she chose well. She believed that. But she could have chosen even better—to kill two birds with one stone: have Ottabio kill Xanxus, betray him before he delivers the final blow and earn a permanent leave of absence from Nono. And then she'd finally be free to do whatever the hell she wants.

But, she wasn't _**that**_ thinker, the one who'd think things to make his own life better and not someone else's. She was always late to think of her own interest. But oh well, at least now she'd get to be loose-tongued around the-...

She was driven away from her train of thought, as she heard crawling and whispers; it was a large amount of people who did it too thus she excluded Ottabio coming back to kill her or even sending someone else to do it; besides, there'd be no merit in that, given he'd only prove himself wrong to Xanxus.

So what could it be? She was curious; she extended both her ears, willing herself to listen better...the silenced voices and the hushed moving was coming closer to her. She perked up entirely, going so much as to stand on her knees.

"Look, there's a woman here..." she clearly heard someone say, the first of the line, too.

She didn't know what happened then, but everyone stopped dead in their tracks—most probably the man leading them raised a hand to halt their advance. By the sounds they were making, they felt like professionals—not to mention the minimum amount of time it took to stop so many people.

She was even more curious now to know who they were.

She felt someone yanking away her blindfold; there wasn't much light—in fact the only light around was artificial, but it still hurt a little. It was as if she'd forgotten how to see...! When her eyes adjusted to the new conditions, she made out the silhouettes of about thirty men, armed to the teeth; wearing military uniforms...wait what? Military uniforms? Were these people...sent from the state?

_Wow, wow, wow! What the fuck is going on?_ She had to find out! "Who are you and what are you doing here?" the man from before asked – she recognised the voice -.

"I'm a hostage. I'm a doctor, a scientist and they need me but I...you know, I don't want to-...!"

"She's a prisoner, men!" he said immediately, buying her story completely. "Let's free her and move on! One of you will stay back here to guard her!"

She would have grinned like a maniac had she not a role to play. "Oh thank you so much, kind sir!" She thanked her luck for Xanxus' foul mood that got her into a skirt but out of the Varia badge or else they'd never believe her. "How could I ever repay you?"

"You be safe and away from these people; that will do."

Jubilant, or at least she pretended very well to be, she allowed the soldier burdened with the task of keeping her safe until this raid was over to release her from her prison. She saw she was in an actual holding cell, very old school with bars and locks and stone walls.

The man helping her looked strong, healthy and big; he had all of his gear on, which was why he looked so ominous. Or it had to do with the fact he was holding a huge automated weapon. Yes, that might have been it.

The rest of the soldiers had already cleared out of the first level –or last, depending on which side you saw it from- and the two of them were left alone...she tried to think of a strategy. She figured she should strike up some small talk till she decided what to do.

"So cold down here comparatively, wouldn't you say?"

"I wouldn't know; I wear all these." he said apathetically, calling her bluff.

She bit her lip for her stupidity...but then a better thought came and she found it to be an excellent idea: if he considered her stupid then by all means, she should reinforce that belief! "...but I still am cold. Maybe if you gave me your jacket I would be?"

"...you want my jacket?"

She nodded, too girly for her tastes. "Right now?"

She fluttered her eyebrows momentarily and gave him a guilty smile; he sighed. Her plan was working! "Fine...but you'll have to hold my gun for a moment; can you do it without firing it accidentally? The safety is off."

"I'll try! And I won't touch the trigger."

He still seemed sceptical and he knew he was about to regret his decision for reasons unexplained, but he went through with it anyway. He handed her the weapon carefully, like giving a baby to someone to hold, and went for his zipper.

While he was occupied with his jacket's workings though, she started "examining" the gun, acting as inconspicuous as possible. When his jacket was off, and she could see the full extent of his bullet proof jacket, she fired!

She tried to aim for his neck and his hands solely, but the kick of the gun was strong and she ended up filling him with bullets and holes. At least she managed to land a few killing blows, she thought forgivingly to herself as she shrugged at her result. He was dead so no big deal. She made sure of it though by checking his pulse and once she saw he was truly dead she searched him: she found a good knife, ammo and of course a hand gun. Oh, and his intercom!

She took all, even his Kevlar, and after she hid him, she bolted upstairs.

* * *

><p><strong>AN**:Ooooh, action! And shit happening! More on the way; please read and review~!


	11. Who lies and who doesn't

**A/N**: Dun dun dun~! Another update! I'm tellingyou summer has been good to me as far as this story is concerned! Thank you my lovely beta reader, **Orihara Izaya**, you do all the dirty work!

And now this is the conclusion to the fight and the solution to the misunderstanding!

* * *

><p>She took all, even his Kevlar, and after she hid him, she bolted upstairs.<p>

As she was going, she could hear the soldiers; they were but one level above her – she realised there were many after all, and she'd been going down in a spiral way which was why she didn't understand the many floors –; she's catch up relatively easily. Well that was only reasonable, thinking they wanted to be silent and careful and they were a bunch.

_So, one of them is dead, and now I have weapons to fight with. The rest of them are a level above. They are too many for me to fight single headedly but I bet there are always stragglers left behind whom I can easily take out as I'll be the last one they expect to take up arms against them. And if they've heard the commotion, they might suspect an intruder of a different kind_, the thought as she was forming her game plan in her mind.

She had no idea if the boss would take this as a sign of allegiance or betrayal, thinking she wanted to turn her weapons against him, but this would probably be an "all or nothing" situation. And why was the military here on the first place? That ought to alert him a little as to what Ottabio's dealings were and what kind of man he truly was.

After all, there were many things the mafia did, but challenging directly the authority of the military of the country they were trying to protect sounds stupid and ridiculous and anyone who did it, obviously had other goals in mind. She hoped the true identity of these men would save her head from the executioner's block Xanxus would no doubt want to put her on.

She sighed, checking her weapon. It was locked and loaded—she loaded it after she'd emptied it all on the poor soldier and then saw her handgun had the same fate. She felt herself to be certain she wore the Kevlar of the soldier, not to have any surprises and nodded to herself.

It's Showtime! She went to start-…and then had to stop to take off her shoes and chuck them somewhere they wouldn't be seen. Running with heels silently wasn't an option.

So then, she ran as fast as her burdened self would allow her, hunching her back from the wait of the semiautomatic weapon and the bullet proof jacket; this stuff was heavy! How could they all sprint in them…? Well, copious amount of exercise and training did that to a person but she wasn't the athletic type. The only type of working out she ever did was swim in the summer time in her pool…

Oh how she missed those days…!

Wait, what? No, her mind wandered; she had to focus on the task at hand! She stopped a moment for a breath and an eavesdrop. She heard the soldiers were directly on top of her—that meant she covered some ground. Good. She had to keep going, soundlessly yet fast, as fast as she was going now if not more.

She took a deep breath, held it, and started going again, with small fast steps. She should be making big fewer ones, but she figured she wouldn't be able to move adequately…so she kept it up. That was, until she reached the same level with the soldiers; there, everything gone to hell!

And she wasn't kidding: the second she actually had visual contact with her designated targets, shots were fired to their direction – ultimately, possibly harming her, too due to the fact she was behind them! – and she had to make an impressive leap to get out of the range. In fact, she dived in such a manner, she thought someone should be there to judge it and give her a nine out of ten for the form and the excellent timing!

But even with the guns in her hands and the Kevlar protecting her and the intercom in her ear listening to all that went on so she was never caught by surprise…she was still scared. So very frightened…she heard the gunshots fired from others and she felt they all stroke a nerve within her. She didn't hear the positions and the locations of every person in the room, friend or foe; she only heard their screams as they died.

She couldn't see anything but that little moment in the beginning when more than five men fell dead while their bodies were being bolted with bullets and the blood spurted out of everywhere…and she couldn't take it anymore, she couldn't see. She'd originally thought she was cut out for this: she was a scientist, a doctor, a mafia member, prone to this sort of thing; when she sees nothing but samples and intestines and syringes, she ought to be used to the sight of blood.

But every little wound and cry was too much; it reminded her of her aunt, of her sudden and unfair death. It gave her a little chill because all these people had family who would miss them—even the man she killed so effortlessly. Why hadn't she been so shaken over his death, too?

That was easy: it wasn't as terrible as this. It was a survival matter; now it would be so much different and she would be thrust into a battlefield where both sides might be her enemy. He hadn't cried, too; he silently accepted his fate and dropped without the smallest protest. But now, everyone was screaming in her ear! Everyone was praying for mercy to God while muttering small chants of personal nature to calm down. Some even whispered ladies or gentlemen's names…

And she wanted to do nothing but bawl like a baby.

She wasn't cut out for this mafia killing business after all, especially if it meant her getting her hands dirty directly and not through some elaborate scheme like it was the deal with Nono's third and favourite son whom she was supposed to murder from a very safe distance and with acid.

She grinded her teeth and shut her eyes more; she waited patiently in her corner for all the killing to stop once and for all before she dared to even move from her place. It was comfortable and cosy and it protected her from all three sides but one and she was facing that way; she had no blind spots and she could easily defend—and only defend herself there. Unless someone came through the wall in which case...clusterfuck!

But there! The shooting was over and the dust settled; she could feel it because she no longer had the wish to sneeze or gag…she opened her eyes tentatively one by one, still holding on to her gun for dear life, and peeked through her eyelids to see and feel nothing but the stillness of death and post mortem confusion of the living. Then, some final gunshots were heard, ripping the deaf silence and then nothing…

_It must have been the last ones standing_, she thought with an alarming twisting of her stomach, but she managed to keep her food down—and it wasn't that much anymore, since the last time she consumed anything was more than half a day ago.

Still trembling—wait, when did she start? Oh, she must have been too scared, to notice. So, still trembling, she stood up. Well, tried to anyway, given she couldn't come to lift herself up. She hanged the semiautomatic gun around her neck and with both hands now she supported herself on her knees and pushed; she managed to get up and then she gripped on to her gun again as if her life depended on it. And quite probably it did.

She moved with caution, her back on the wall; she didn't duck or bend her knees though, because she wanted to be able to see all that was going on into the large room. After all, there was where Xanxus and everyone else were situated during the attack—she heard the soldiers say it on the intercom.

When she almost reached the light and the mouth of the dark corridor, instinctively she dived; she had no idea why she did that, but something inside told her she shouldn't be seen. When she dared to raise her head again – she hurt so much when she fell on the goddamn gun and had it not been for the Kevlar she'd have probably crushed her sternum – she saw a peculiar sight: the ever-calm and poker-faced Ottabio was looking angry and he was quite literally snarling at his boss.

And now the chips were down!

Her eyes widened, seeing Xanxus become somewhat furious—not a difficult task for the man, but it was always scary to see him so pissed off though it was always a relief to know he wasn't mad at you. But she didn't relax; in fact, she was even tenser: if Ottabio showed anger he must have been furious as well and, given he didn't strike her as a pushover with no plan, he had something up his sleeve to back up his mutiny!

And where in earth were the rest of the elite Varia members, those slobs?

"You are going to die bastard child, and your stupidity will be the sole reason!" Ottabio said too loud and cackled.

"And how is a weakling like you going to do that?" Xanxus snapped back arrogantly, but she could hear the contempt in his voice.

But before he even finishes his sentence, loud noises deafened everyone; a small earthquake started shaking the place and with horror Francesca realised it originated from beneath her feet! She missed the part where Xanxus shot at the snake with his flames and missed him because Ottabio was expecting it, because she was too concentrated on the shaking floor…

Resisting her urge to scream bloody murder, she jumped to the side when the floor actually split open, right before her eyes! In the beginning she thought it was an attack of some sort, but then she saw it was like a mechanism, the floor was like a hutch opening and closing…but not before it brought a horrible thing of science to the surface:

As she watched the huge machinery, a robot-like thing that seemed to be a person wearing huge armour—_maybe something like Iron man_, she thought distractedly for a moment, remembering all the comics she'd ever read – come to its senses and start walking, she hid behind anything she could find.

Surprisingly, she was let off the hook! Even though she _must_ have been into his range not only of attack but also sight, that person controlling this thing or if this was indeed a robot then the robot itself, dismissed her! She was sure whatever that was saw her but did nothing against her. In order not to lose its good favour she hanged the gun around her neck again, raised her hands a little as a gesture of giving up and fell back in the background.

No, she wasn't a coward; she knew if she wanted to make any difference in this battle she had to strike at flesh, either Ottabio or Xanxus'. She had no idea why but she knew she'd never actually harm her boss – because she still considered him as such – but if winning this fight for him meant incapacitate him, she was more than willing to do it. She only had to be careful and keep a sharp eye.

"My Gola Mosca is here…now prepare yourself!"

Francesca's eyes widened in realization; _so that's what this were! It's a Gola Mosca; the large humanoid robotic suits with state of the art weaponry attached to them! But just a sec; those things require human life force in order to keep going which was why they were banned from use—oh no!_

Ottabio was controlling the huge thing from afar, as it seemed and as cruel as it was to watch it, Xanxus' was losing; she knew this would happen! His flames weren't fully there yet, in that state where they are perfect again and now it was costing him! He could hold his ground well, but seeing he fought with anger and excess – at least none of his moves were wasted, too – he would tire out quickly and then…

She didn't even want to think about it.

Surely, he landed some good, powerful blows to his enemy, but the enemy was no longer human! No, it fed off of one, but that thing wasn't getting tired! Yet Xanxus was. _Oh where the hell is Squalo when you need him?_ Despite his shouts and his curses he was always reliable and despite Xanxus' words of threat and superiority all knew he couldn't keep this up much longer, or he'd truly die.

And then…?

_Oh what can I do? If I go in there right now, the Mosca will see me and make me disappear without a care in the world—and I definitely don't have Xanxus' reflexes to avoid anything. There __**is**__ a small chance I won't be attacked again though, but it's too small. _She could bet everything once she raised her gun against Ottabio she'd be blown to bits-…

_Oh wait a minute. That's __**it**__!_

She'd be friendly to Ottabio so she escapes the wrath of the Mosca and when they least expect it, she'll take him down with the knife and the handgun she's got! Not bad!

_Of course there's the small issue of Xanxus killing me out of pure spite because he can_ but she hopes he sees through her plan. But wouldn't that mean, Ottabio would see through it, too? Ugh, her head hurt with all the possibilities. She only had to be convincing.

So she walked into the light of the corridor with her chest out and her head held high as she raised her arms up again once more. "I'm innocent," she said when they all noticed her and she just walked in there, with the gun hanging from her neck.

Ottabio smirked. "Are you now?" he managed to ask while avoiding Xanxus' flames and the Mosca's destruction. "Then what's up with all the props?"

Her boss had also noticed but he was in a bit of a bind so he said nothing; he only glared, fiercer than any other time before. That told her absolutely nothing in terms of either he got it or not. So she played along.

"I had to escape somehow…who likes being imprisoned?" she made the reasonable argument and slowly took her gun off and left it on the ground. "See? I come in peace."

She hadn't spared another look for Xanxus, trying to make this as believable as possible. He was still weighing her with his eyes though, and so was Ottabio who spoke: "Very well; give it to me. Slide it here."

When she obeyed, he looked at her oddly. Yet, he picked it up and checked it: it was locked and loaded. His eyes became smaller. "What made you change your mind and help me? You were rather adamant earlier. And offensive I might add."

She was stuck in one place while all the rest were dancing around in a crazy rhythm of fire and violence; now Ottabio had unlocked the gun and fired at will; Xanxus was shooting his own flames; the Mosca was leaving a path of devastation. And she was there watching it happen, her hands now lowered and her eyes following everything the best she could. She had to find an opening.

"Look. At me; do you need more reason than **this**?"

"You have to prove it; tell me something that will help me kill him!" he shouted in an effort to be heard over the entire racket.

She appeared to be battling with herself; she had to tell him something true and big, or else he'd never accept her. But then Xanxus would think she really betrayed him. But if everything works out for the best, then-…

She made up her mind, shaking her head. "His flames won't last for more than fifty minutes due to his medication; if you want to beat him, stall him!" she blurted out in the end, eyes closed…

And to that, Xanxus almost exploded!

His flames became so hot and high that Francesca who was more than six metres away felt her hairs' ends singed just for being in the room! Everything was the colour of pure angry fire, and what it enveloped, it melted. Xanxus' eyes even looked like they had changed colour while all of his wounds resurfaced!

And when she saw the fire move, she knew it was coming for her! She tried to protect herself, but a wave of flames came rushing—but the Gola Mosca protected her!

"Wh-…?"

"I see you are honest." Ottabio said surprised as he landed in front of her, pushing her out of the fray. "Very well; I shall keep you with me in the new Varia," he decided, and looked forward, taking in his surroundings and where he could send her. "I know of your skills in science and medicine so you'll come very handy. When I give you the signal you ru—ah… ah."

For a moment, everything froze; Xanxus came to a halt, ever watching, ever doubting and his flames hovered. The Gola Mosca too stopped shortly, waiting for new orders, as it appeared confused on who was a target and who was not. And then there was Ottabio, who was falling silently to his knees, his lung pierced by her very big, very sharp military knife as a trickle of blood started staining his side of the face…

He fell onto the floor, gasping for breath, but unable to get it; he'd raised his hand to the heavens, as if asking for help from some higher power…she only took the knife out, spurting blood as he let out a small scream and then proceeded to cut his throat. When she dealt with people as specimens, she realised, it became so much easier for her to kill. So she tried to do that or else her hand would never stop shaking like a leaf.

"The fuck d'you do?" Xanxus shouted exasperated from where he stood, taking advantage of the huge Mosca's inability to act for the time being.

She gaped. "I just killed him for you, what did you think it was?"

"You took my kill bitch!"

"Can we discuss this later!? KYAH!"

Without her notice – and how she could, she never learnt to mind her surroundings – the Mosca was fully functional again and it came for her. It was so close it didn't even need to fire a weapon: it only flicked its hand and sent her flying to the opposite wall with too much force.

She felt some bones crack upon impact. "Ow…" she said in the end, as she was scurrying off the floor and somewhere to find shelter.

But the Gola wasn't done: it turned towards her. It knew it wouldn't take more than one more hit to finish her off completely, so it merely raised its mechanical arm and fired…! But it hit nothing but the wall!

"Ugh!" she exclaimed in pain, clutching where she thought some of her broken and most important bones were.

The Gola Mosca hadn't hit her…because Xanxus did it first: he'd come with exaggerated anger and kicked her all the way to the other side of the room! She had no idea if he did it to protect her, to pay her back for killing Ottabio or so she wouldn't steal more of his kills; but whatever reason, he'd just saved her life and she was grateful…as well as in great pain.

_My ribs…!_

Some more time passed, and now Xanxus was the Mosca's sole target again: she was forgotten in her corner and she was trying frantically to bandage tightly up anything broken but she knew this fight wouldn't be over easily: Xanxus wouldn't hold out for much longer, but the Mosca seemed to go on and on, never getting tired.

"If I don't find a way to disable its feeding system then not only will the person inside it die, but so will the boss; I have to-!"

A loud crush and a wall going down from the Mosca interrupted her loud musings.

"VOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOI!" she heard and she immediately perked up. Oh the sound she'd been expecting to hear all this time finally…! "You think you can win this without our help? Selfish boss!"

He immediately fell in the battle, distracting the huge robot thing.

"Reinforcements arrived …"

The baby came…and then it looked as if everything was a blur for the woman; so she closed her eyes relieved and felt everything around her going dark…

.

.

When she woke up again, she was lying on a bed. She had bandages, real bandages, wrapped around her broken areas and all of her clothes were neatly stacked on a chair next to her. She tried to sit up and look at herself-…only her ribs hurt by the sudden movement. So she did it again, carefully, almost sluggishly.

She was wearing something like but not quite a hospital gown. It was comfortable and suitable for tests but it was too obvious it was homemade as there were strass and tinsel on the hems. Heart-shaped red patterns decorated it everywhere and she spied some lace somewhere there too as a second layer.

_Lussuria's design, no doubt_, she thought shaking her head with a small smile. Surprisingly, her head did not hurt when she shook it. Thank God, no damage there. So she only had the broken bones and nothing else, seeing both her hands and feet functioned properly. She sighed relieved.

Only then did she look around—and the movement did hurt her quite a bit.

She was in a room she'd never seen before and currently it appeared to be used as an infirmary as she wasn't the only one somehow bandaged and recovering. There were many beds, all occupied, with men and women lying on them. Only, she noticed, none of them looked anything like a soldier or a Varia member: they were all well-dressed women and men with smooth and untroubled sleeping faces.

No men or woman who's seen true horror and death has that sort of look when asleep-none. So she knew, none in here was a warrior and none in here was nearly as hurt as her; they were simply sleeping with maybe a plaster on some nose or a finger that she couldn't see. She shook her head. So she was put in with the weak and the worthless guests.

She scoffed and reached out – _uh the fuck ouch; these ribs are a true pain_ – for her clothes; she'd get dressed and leave this place. Then she'd go look for the boss…and see how the hell Xanxus would receive her. Not well, judging he didn't even allow her to be treated in the same room as him…but then again, he actually allowed her to be treated, which is fortunate. And this _was_ the first time she was ever hurt so he might just not consider her an active fighter…

She'd see

She was now wearing her Varia uniform again-no. Scratch that. She was simply wearing pretty matching clothes, given her Varia badge was taken from her. She shadowed. _That's not fair_, she thought like a petulant child…! And after all she did why had they still not returned it to her? Didn't she deserve it? She'd been a good Varia member…

She felt her eyes water and her nose was about to start running; she sniffed and sniffed and wiped at her eyes before they start spilling tears. "I-…I ab…I ab a good Varia bebber." she complained to herself, her nose running, still wiping at her eyes furiously. It hurt like hell, especially crying since she had to take more breaths, but she didn't really care. "I shouldnd be dreaded lige dis…"

She wiped at her eyes one last time and stood up, fully clothed. She spotted a mirror at the other side of the room and went to it with sloppy slow steps; she stood in front of it reluctantly and straightened her back. "I loog lige a djungy," she snapped at herself.

She had dark big circles under her eyes and the makeup she had worn, had been running or had been smudged. Her clothes were all wrinkled and she had no shoes, just her stockings. And her hair…was all down. And full of knots. She never wore them down too because they'd been getting longer and longer and now they were reaching her back, just below her bra.

She hated her image, but she also hated the world currently, so she'd live. She left the room slowly and soundlessly, while dragging her feet around aimlessly to find even the smallest indication of where the rest of the Varia elite would be. She kept an ear out for Squalo's booming voice or some flame randomly spilling out of a room…

And she found it: "VOOOOOOOOOOOI" she heard the characteristic exclamation "shitty boss! We're not responsible for that! Wait till Francesca comes."

Her blood froze in her veins. _Oh no_; not only was he still angry but also he still blamed her? She gulped audibly as she headed with a slight tremor in her hand to the room she heard the commotion.

She went for the knob. She hesitated only for a moment and then she opened the door wide.

And then she saw everyone was standing in some sort of a circle of chairs with Xanxus at the head – as he was the only one in a bed – while he was looking thunderous. He was patched up partially and very hastily as she could see and she could also see the slight tilt away from him everyone was supporting. She cringed, thinking what was about to follow.

"See? She came."

"Franny-chan~!" Lussuria snapped immediately after Squalo's observation and he sprang out of his chair to hug her.

_Ow, my bones_…she thought, hearing them cracking all over again but said nothing. Because he was his usual self and she was feeling accepted again.

"Look at you, all hurt and smudged. And your hair…! Ah, and I told boss a woman unaccustomed to fighting shouldn't be thrust in battle! This is what happens! Poor little dear…"

"At least she got to exercise a little, u shi shi…"

"Bel-chan!" he exclaimed with scolding in his voice.

"Here, exercise some more:" he snapped and threw some knives! Lussuria effortlessly hid her from his attack but her breath was still caught in her chest from all the pain the manhandling brought!

"Francesca" Levi said suddenly, silencing all others "I am so glad you are walking on your own despite the obvious wounds. I am relieved."

As he was going to hug her, too a fireball interrupted him and hit Levi on the back! "No one cares! And you," he turned to the shocked woman, whom Lussuria hid under his arm yet again "come and fix me already!"

She hadn't seen it all this time but, other than the obvious wounds and bruises he sported proudly or were covered by the carelessly wrapped bandages, Xanxus' hands were also shaking! It reminded her that first day he'd escaped the ice. So that was why he was testy? She couldn't blame him.

She immediately turned to Squalo the only one she knew would be reasonable enough and do as she asks. "Bring me lots of ice immediately please; if you don't know where they keep it find a housekeeper." She'd already seen the medicine she'd brought with her were on the bedside table so she was speaking while going there in a firm stride. "If there is no ice, lots of cold water will do, too?"

He nodded once and disappeared. "It's nothing to worry about; you've only overused your flames—think of it like you burnt out for a little while. It'll take just a day or so for your body to make up for the damage."

"Ooh, that's why you need the ice," Lussuria noticed thrilled.

"Exactly. It will calm him down **a lot**—and I mean only your trembling! I have no say over your nerves…" she hastily added, as she was handling the serums, putting them in needles.

But when she turned, she saw not only was he not about to hit her, he looked rather relaxed by her explanations and her effort to keep him well. She found that extremely odd. And then she remembered her badge…it was ripped away and never given back! She wanted her badge back—she'd earned it!

She could feel the tears welling up in her eyes, as she could no longer see well because of them; had she not been so used to these shots, she'd have no idea if they managed to find their target or not. But she was, and she knew she was making them just fine…but she still wanted to cry!

Why she was not included anymore? Why was she not a Varia anymore? She hated the lot of their selfish asses, but…they'd given her some weird crazy place to belong. And she hadn't had one of those for a very long time. So now they were just taking it away? No! They may be abusive and demanding and manipulative and loud and dangerous, but they treated her fairly—they treated her, the same. Suddenly, she realised she wanted to belong there with them…

"Stop your pathetic crying…"

Her boss's snarl, if she could still call him that, awoke her. "I-I'b nod cryin'…" she lied, wiping at her tears once more.

"Aaaaw, sweet Franny-chan, don't be like that…"

"Leave be alone…"

"I said stop your goddamn crying." He sounded less angry and more desperate.

"Well, if I ab cryin' id's your fauld!" she said, suddenly feeling brave. He looked at her with a raised eyebrow. She grabbed on her sides because now she was hurting more and more. "I was a good bebber, I killed Oddabio fo' you…why dodju give be by badge back? I wand by Varia badge back…!"

"Aw, isn't she so pure?" Lussuria asked, still melting.

Belphegor had decided not to take part in this one, and instead he was pestering Mammon who appeared very distressed by that. "And why would anyone take your badge when you're such a good girl? We'll give you your badge back, right boss~?" he went on, uncaring of Bel who was now being chased outside by Mammon.

"You mean you got what she said?" Xanxus asked incredulously.

Lussuria waved him off. "A mother always knows her daughter's woes…"

"Tch, whatever; it's in my right pocket. Come take it so if it'll stop your crying…"

But just then the door swung open and Squalo walked in with a bunch of icepacks all in a huge plastic bag; "I got them!" he exclaimed more than pleased with himself as he made his big entrance. He then proceeded to dump all of them, by emptying the contents of the bag onto Xanxus' head.

That was not a smart move, as almost simultaneously they started melting due to Xanxus' rising temperature out of sheer anger. "You bastard-!"

"Ids OK" said Francesca suddenly as she patted her boss's head with surprising affection and tenderness "'e did well do shower you wid 'em. Id 'elps de coolin' down fase."

And then she promptly took as many as she could in one hand –the other kept holding on to her damaged ribcage – and started rubbing them all over his chest and back. At first he stood ramrod but when he got used to the cool contact he relaxed yet again. She smiled at his child-like manners and even conceptions. The moment he thought she betrayed him he was: "go away" and when she proved loyal he was: "come back again". It was funny to think of him as a petulant child because it actually made him easier to guess, she thought in a fit of clarity.

Everyone left them alone the moment they saw his temper rising though, even if he didn't manage to turn it into a full-blown shouting match.

When she was over, after his hands stopped shaking, she bent low and searched for her badge with her one available hand. "It's not in your right pocket."

She made the realization after she'd searched for about three times.

"Then it must be in the left one. Look for it!" he snapped annoyed, as he' almost fallen asleep from all the coddling.

She pouted and searched his left pocket as well; but her pout became a frown when she didn't find it in the other left pocket. "Oh that's right;" he suddenly said, a small smirk appearing on his face "I meant my back pocket."

She looked at him appalled; what was up with this man? "Well then turn around."

"No. I'm bored."

"B-b-but how...?"

His smirk grew. "Reach for it. I'm not that heavy am I?"

"B-b-b-b..."

"You want your badge or not?" he provoked smug enough. "You have to earn it..."

"F-fine! I'll get it!"

And with that, her hand dived from the side of his back down to his butt cheek in search of one left pocket...which just wasn't there! She cursed herself; but of course, he'd said "right" in the beginning! Ignoring his ever growing smirk, she went for the other butt cheek. Only there was nothing there again! What the f-...

"Maybe it's in my right breast pocket then."

She huffed and looked at him, leaning over him as she was. "You know, you are some kind of first class pervert Xanxus."

"It is _boss_ for you" he snubbed, actually smacking her ass by the position she had; she squeaked "how many times do I have to tell you?"

"Sorry..." she muttered between her teeth and this once, she found the pocket immediately. "Thanks for this" she said in the end straightening, nodding at her badge with her chin "I appreciate-."

"I don't care. Now leave me alone."

"Your bandages..."

"Fix them then and then leave. Do I have to spell everything out for you?"

She resisted the urge to slap her own forehead in frustration...but at least she had her badge back now. She was a part of them again, with her loyalty tested and renewed and their faith in her was even stronger maybe. She smiled at the thought content as she was fixing his bandages...

"Me being hurt, is so funny? Tch, they are right; you are misses S after all."

If she wasn't so glad she wasn't a pariah to him anymore, she would have fainted from the shock of hearing those words out of his mouth. But she was so she merely swallowed all of her feelings and kept doing what she was doing. When she was finished she tried to leave but not before he slapped her butt again. She turned to him shocked but he only raised an eyebrow, daring her to say anything.

His wiggling eyebrow seemed to say "thanks for killing Ottabio for me" in all its sarcastic yet literal glory. She shrugged half-heartedly and vanished from his sight...still pondering on why the hell would he slap her butt twice. That was not cool. And it was totally sexual; why would he do anything like that—or then again, maybe it was just sexist. But then wouldn't he have done it before?

She shook her head disappointed in herself. She should just draw the line somewhere and that was it: no butt-slapping from now on; period. She only hoped he'd humour her and never do it again.

.

.

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**A/N**: Please leave a review~!


	12. Francesca's party

**AN**: Dun dun dun~! New chapter! Yay, let's pick up were we'd left off, with the whole Ottabio affair coming to an end. Everything must have closure one way or another, right? Enjoy the latest installment~!

Hot damn, why do I always forget these things? Thank you my lovely beta reader, **Orihara Izaya, **you are wonderful! ANd I do not own KHR, only Francesca and her family.

* * *

><p>Francesca was standing out of Xanxus' room – the one that was supposed to be his study for when he felt alive enough to do something –; it was easier for her to stand than sit down because her ribs hurt less with the correct posture. She was waiting for him to let her in and ask her about Ottabio.<p>

Ah…the Ottabio deal! "The betrayal" as Xanxus had dubbed it accurately enough. It had barely been two days yet it already had a name! Nono had taken all sorts of measures and precautions with the rest of the members, keeping alive but one man with rank and a handful of his soldiers – as the rest were unforgivingly slaughtered by the Varia elite – while he had every intention of questioning Francesca, too.

But that was where Xanxus put his foot down. Well, in all literalness, he put his fist down and did it with quite the might, cracking the table in the process. Then, he proceeded to tell Nono there was no chance in hell he'd give her over and that he _deserved_ to know the details, at least from her who seemed to be the first person to actually blow the whistle on Ottabio. He had praised her loyalty, too – he called her the most faithful dog he's had in a while – and then simply took off with her – by dragging her along -.

She'd felt an inexplicable pride when he had decided to interrogate her himself because that only meant he wanted her side of the story, and she had expanded her chest with her head held high—it hurt her, but it felt good.

She was starting to like this man and his antics. She knew not why, other than her growing Stockholm syndrome.

So now was the moment he'd chosen for her: Squalo had broken into her room – and she uses the verb wisely – and announced the fact Xanxus would be now seeing her. Then he promptly chastised her for being improperly dressed – "Why are you not wearing your uniform scum? When you went in all that trouble to get one and become one of us? Do you see me in my pyjamas?" – and left, as fast as he'd come.

He was truly the rain guardian: he rained and rained and rained upon you, till everything was washed away.

So she'd begrudgingly put on her skirt-themed uniform – it was far too excruciating to put on stockings with her injuries –, trying to catch Xanxus in high spirits, braved herself for the verbal abuse that was about to come, and headed to his room. And she was currently waiting for the door to open and let her in as Bel and Levi were also giving their reports in there. She'd only hoped they said nothing to anger him.

Knowing Bel though, she was sure he'd do it on purpose.

Then, a "get the fuck out" was heard quite clearly and two men ran out—one snorting his laughter the other crying for his imagined slight against his boss. Oh poor Levi; he was always so easy to mind scar.

She ignored them both though, and walked in Xanxus' chambers. "I'm here."

"Sit down." He was testy but at least he didn't hit her with something to make her sit which was an improvement from what she'd thought she'd face. "Now tell me how you knew of his betrayal."

She then went into a detailed account of her past encounter with Ottabio and what she'd overheard when she was young. She made an effort to remember everything about Ottabio that made her scared or doubtful. He was simply nodding throughout her story till she reached the end.

"Why didn't your aunt agree with him?"

She started jotting points with her fingers. "Because A) she didn't like him at all; when I later asked her about him she'd said, and I remember her exact words "never waste your time listening to people like him". And B) she really wanted to study you. You were an anomaly, and an innovation; she loves—loved those."

When he looked at her, she felt the scorching of his gaze; oh right, he hated to be treated like a "lab rat". She swallowed. "Err, I mean, not that you're, um, I mean you're a person and—oh come on! It's not my fault she saw you as a specimen OK? _I_ think you're human…enough. When you're not angry."

His eyebrow raised but let it slide in sake of the information he was getting. "And why did you just come and told me that?"

She lost him.

"What do you mean?"

He rolled his eyes. "No sane person would just go up to someone and tell them that the one person they think is definitely on their side is actually betraying them. It was a daring and mostly _stupid_ move. Why d'you do it?"

"Um…" she looked away for support; his glare was far too strict. "You see I just…thought that was the right thing to do. You're my boss and he was a coward supposedly working for you who wanted to kill you and my aunt always told me that truth will always find its way no matter what, so…"

He probed for her to go on, but she only shrugged, out of habit. He ducked his head for her to continue because that _can't_ be all – not in his book –, but she only shook hers. He looked taken aback…and then he laughed. He laughed and he laughed and she watched him while being completely still.

- She vaguely remembered the saying "_it_ is more scared of you than you are of it" so she made no threatening moves. Though she was sure, in this case, she was more scared of it than the other way round. -

"You are even more naïve than I thought" he admitted the source of his sudden mirth and made a point to look at her thoroughly "you are one strange broad."

He called _her_ strange when he was living in with Lussuria…and all the rest? That was rich! "Wh-?"

"And how did you remember that sort of thing anyway? Didn't your aunt tell you to forget about him?"

She felt tongue-tied now; she knew why she remembered, she just didn't want him to know. "Um…well…it did take me a while to place him; my memory is unflawed—almost, almost photographic. OK, I can't actually memorise a book just by looking at it but once I know something it's in; it never leaves or gets misplaced."

She was trying so hard to sound professional and pointed, he knew she was lying; his smarmy attitude told her so. "So I just had to take a little longer to find this certain piece of information."

His smirk was ever present. "…You were just worried about me."

"N-n-n-n-no-"

"Very convincing."

Anger swelled her chest, as she was ready to lash out, but he silenced her with a wave of his hand. "But I have to disappoint you; you're not my type." He waited a moment to let what he'd said sink in before he made the final jab: "No tits."

He could just photograph the look of utmost hurt, betrayal and offence on her face…

"Well, I don't tend to like bratty, unstable, assassins with daddy-issues either so I guess we're squared!"

"Shut up and fix me, _misses S_."

"Why does everyone insist on calling me that?"

"If _everyone_'s saying it …" he said as devilishly, as arrogantly he looked at her "suck it up and patch me up."

"As you wish!" she snapped embarrassed and snatched his phone. She winced but didn't let it get her down. "Squalo bring me cubes again; yes I know it's too menial a task. Well, get someone else to do it…! I don't care; do I look like a maid? Then **say it to the rest**!" she screeched the last and shut the phone so violently, Xanxus slapped her hand.

"It's an antique."

"Sorry," she barked instead of the "so are you" line that came to her.

"And what are the ice cubes for? I'm not shaking anymore."

"Yes, but your temperature has risen above normal anyway; haven't you noticed the air conditioning is on in here?

And though I have stopped the medicine that do the same thing – seeing you were in ice and all – most of the drugs I'm giving you have the same $effect, one way or another. So I'm getting the cubes to cool you down a little; today is the last time I promise."

He smirked at her naivety; it was becoming one of his favourite traits about her. She was so easy to agitate it amused his own sadistic side. "Just get on with it and don't forget to be _thorough_…"

_Pervert!_ She mentally exclaimed redder than blood, but she felt she had no other choice other than doing as he said. And when he asked why the serums had turned into needles _again_, even if she'd said it obly be for one day- he hated to be punctured like a pincushion – she explained this was something like the cubes. It **would** stop and from tomorrow on it would be all serums again.

He grunted his understanding and let himself relax, as he savoured the feel of her hands massaging him, taking away his soreness...

.

.

She'd been sleeping her day away, having pleasant and colourful dreams. Ever since she was taken by the Varia in fact she's been having nothing _but_ colourful and admittedly wild dreams. It felt like tripping on acid, only in her sleep. And she knew what tripping on acid was like not out of personal experience, but from everything she has seen on movies or read in books. (Of course, maybe the dreams had to do with the fact she was keeping herself in a constant hook on painkillers to forget the constant prickling of her ribs yet she couldn't be sure.)

But she figured it was legitimate because she took great pride in choosing the correct, plausible books. That excluded her long collection of love stories though: being stories that spoke of nothing but a love so strong it overcame any obstacle and eliminated all suspicions of the significant other! A love so pure and just meant to be that nothing else mattered…

She knew they were impossible and would never come true for her.

Of course, don't take her wrong, she didn't like all sorts of romantic stories; for instance, she hated unhealthy, badly written romances especially if they tried to appear as something different!

She shook her head, trying to repress her thoughts of wanting to read a new book, in sake of what she really had to do: cook, clean, prepare the drugs and then tend to her own wounds, her ribs, and make sure everything is OK. Also, exactly because of her ribs, she now had to wake up earlier because she had to do everything slower.

She didn't have anyone massaging or feeding _her_ or making sure she did no sudden movements so she could recuperate faster! Oh no, only the boss had that luxury! Not only did she do virtually all I her power to make him better and prevent him from exerting himself, she even fed him when he was too bored! The one thing he never allowed anyone else to do for him, he finally left it to her.

And she was too pissed she had to spoon feed him almost everyday. And suffer all the humiliation it came with—namely a lot of harassment for no apparent reason other than him feeling like it. And he'd been doing it a lot…it was then when she had decided with firmness she needed to find him a woman!

_That lovely __Silvana Conti woman I'd met at Nono's party will do the trick_, she thought satisfied with herself and smirked. She only had to make it feel like this was all Xanxus' idea and not hers or else she knew he'd react violently. She had to come up with a plan; she puckered her lips in deep thought as she was making her way to the kitchen to make breakfast.

"Wow!"

It was heard from behind her; she jumped out of her thoughts and turned around to face whoever had scared her. "Ah, it's just you Squalo…" she said relieved though a bit alerted by his expression. "What was the exclamation for?" _or the look you're giving me?_

"What; are you kidding? You're walking around in your underwear!"

She gaped and looked at herself immediately.

"Your _sexy_ underwear. I had no idea you enjoyed lace so much…"

But all of his words and his tone were wasted on her; she didn't wear any clothes! Why—she was sure she had taken out her uniform, laid it there with her stockings and her shoes and…oh right. She never put it on.

_Oh God, why_, she thought to herself panicked! She was desperately trying to find something to cover herself with! She put her arms around her and looked everywhere for anything resembling an article of clothing, excluding the pain from her brain for now!

"Ha ha! You didn't even realise you were half-naked? What's wrong with you?"

"Shut up, shut up, shut up!"

Out of completely nowhere, Bel appeared. "Oooh, is this half-naked Tuesday? In that case, let me get Levi; he'd sure love to join you!"

"NO!" _Ah!_ "Don't get Levi—don't get anyone!" she ran behind Squalo to cover herself; he looked at her in a "do I look like a drape" way but she didn't unlatch herself from his hair. "Where did you come from anyway?"

"U shi shi…!"

"Did someone say "half-naked Tuesday"?"

Lussuria appeared behind a wall, his flamboyant hair preceding him. "And is it Franny-chan I'm seeing promoting it? Oh my, dear Franny, you just became my most favourite daughter! I'm joining~!"

Overwhelmed, almost in a flash, his clothes were on the floor and he was in nothing but his own underwear. And they were oh so very colourful and wild, just like her dreams, only with a tinge of nightmare.

"Put your clothes back on!" she said desperate now, still not able to find anything suitable to cover her but Squalo. "And I'm your only daughter anyway-…!"

_Oh wait, if Lussuria took off his clothes then…chance_! She made up her mind: she'd take them for herself! She dived, glad she didn't change his mind to put them back on…only Bel was faster! He'd predicted her move and swept them up before she reached them!

"Damn it Bel!" she barked, holding on to her hurt ribs with one hand, going back to Squalo.

"U shi shi…**Levi! Come here quick; we're getting undressed**!"

"No!"

She banged her head on Squalo's – if there was anything harder than a wall then that was that. She'd seen it for a fact, too when Xanxus threw all sorts of things to him but it never even bled – out of mere frustration and then she proceeded to shake him whole. "Please, just give me your trench coat before Levi comes back!"

"VOOOOOOOI! Do you have any idea what Xanxus will do to me if he finds me without it? At least, if _you_ show up like this, he won't mind. Do you want him to kill me, trash? And get away from me!"

He flailed his arms, but she wouldn't let go.

She held on harder. "Why would Xanxus come here now? Just give it to me and save me from the horror of-! KYAH!"

Levi appeared out of nowhere, like everybody else, only he was already half-naked. "Too late now! Help, help, keep him away from me!" she shook Squalo harder, but he still didn't give in to her requests.

"So I see **this** is the half-naked Tuesday Lussuria and I have been trying so hard to establish. This is great news! Who stripped first?"

Francesca implored Bel not to tell with her eyes and her fierce shaking of her head, but she didn't get through to him; he only smirked and showed her with his finger, in a very grand way. "She did."

"Francesca, you are a genius!" he exclaimed and moved to hug her!

Squalo thought stopped him with a very strong kick to the balls; there was no way he'd allow a half-naked Levi closer than ten inches!

"O-Ouch…I'll just…go tell the boss." He barely said, holding on to his sack in pain, as he staggered away.

"Oh thank God I'm rid of him!"

"Are you now? If he goes to the boss like that and then tells him it's your fault, whom do you think he'll torture for it?" Squalo snapped indignant.

She seriously thought for a moment. "Both?"

"Exactly."

Only then did she realise- "Oh no!"

She started running after him faster than she could breath. Her ribs were in so much pain she thought she'd collapse if she stopped…but that only made her go faster. If she prevented him, it would all be worth it. "If you give me what's left of your winnings from the prank, I'll stop him for you." Mammon said deviously as he caught up with her, actually flying. He'd done that before so she wasn't too surprised.

"NO! I need that money!"

"Then I'm sorry for what's going to happen to you…"

She shook her head; then, she passed Levi, trying not to look at him too much! The horrors she really, really had to endure for her position were crippling! She secretly wished she was never found or taken with them…

She reached her boss first, and busted into the room with force! "Boss!" she exclaimed, one hand holding the double doors open, the other on her ribs. "I'm here!"

He only raised an eyebrow, trying to decide what to be: pissed or amused.

When she looked behind her, and seemed to see something he didn't, she immediately closed the double doors. From the sounds he heard, he figured someone just crushed into it. He had no idea who it could have been, but sure as hell wasn't Squalo or else there would be shouts.

He vaguely wondered who she injured and why.

"Are you ready for your daily doses?" she asked cheery as she was locking the door behind her, wheezing and nearly fainted. That was an odd mix.

She was trying to keep Levi surely away to avoid receiving any sort of abuse because of him and his dim-witted half-baked ideas. To actually believe she was the one who consciously established the half-naked Tuesday…!

Meanwhile, Xanxus noticed all of her movements with great interest; he had to choose amused for now. "Depends on what you offer…"

"What do you mean? Your medicine, as always…which I just remembered I do not carry with me." She slapped her forehead. "Damn."

"I can see that or else you'd have to explain exactly _where_ you're hiding them."

"Eh? Oh, ha ha, no I was-…err…um…" she only just realised what he'd said, causing her to blush. She coughed at his lecherous smirk. "I mean I obviously forgot a lot of things today, such as my clothes," she said suddenly trying to make it sound like forgetting her makeup, waving her hand nonchalantly "but that can be fixed easily. I'll just go fetch them. But, um, till I do…can I sort of borrow a couple of your own clothes?"

"…If you want to get into my pants, you have to act sexier."

"No, I…! What is it with all the innuendo lately anyway?" her nerves finally broke and she started coughing because she was too loud. "I can't concentrate in an environment such as this!"

"Then try wearing clothes from now on, bitch!"

"You've been like this for a couple of weeks now-AH!" she ducked at the random vase he threw towards her and avoided it only just, pained. No wonder after such a long time her ribs hadn't healed almost at all. "Why do you have to be such a tyrant?" she snapped.

Then, unceremoniously she walked to his closet and, for the first time in her life, she disregarded him completely, without even asking if he'd allow her. She only opened the closet, took a long trench coat and pulled it over her.

"Thank you," she said emphatically and turned around and strutted to the door.

She unlocked it slowly but steadily, she opened the door, and she walked over a knocked-out Levi on her way. "I'll be right back, boss," she barked, yet again uncaring of his reaction and headed to her room with her head held high.

She had no idea how the hell he didn't get up and hit her personally with all the shit she just pulled but she could only thank her good luck for the lack of violence. Somewhat surprised though, she realised, at the very least she had made Xanxus think of dirty things, even if for a moment. Given there was no way he'd live those out with her – _I'm not "his type"_, she thought annoyed – then he'd certainly start missing Silvana.

Plan: success!

Wow, hold on a minute; did she bitterly think she wasn't good enough for the likes of Xanxus? Bitterly—_bitterly_!? Why? That implied she was interested in him, which she was not! Why _would_ she be interested in a homicidal maniac anyway...? It was just her womanly ego. Right, she just wanted to know she was attractive to men, of all kinds...she decided that was the sole reason she was bitter about it and moved on.

She took the medicine, she made sure it was all there and walked back to her boss's office...in his own trench coat. Damn it, why was she always forgetting the most important things!? And when he eyed her mightly amused and said:

"You do realise you won't be treating me with my coat on your back, right?"

she knew she would have to make haste on her plan to bring Silvana and Xanxus together.

.

"Why don't we hold a nice party for her being formally accepted in the Varia, huh?" Lussuria propositioned as everyone was at lunch, eating heartily.

Francesca, the instigator and maestro of this conversation, was sitting right next to Squalo, between him and the man who just spoke. She was watching them all closely, trying to gauge by their reactions the outcome of this conversation, but she tried attracting as less attention as possible.

The first one to take the bait was Levi. "Why that sounds like a wonderful idea!" he exclaimed ever willing "this way we can open our doors to more women!"

"And men~!"

"So we'll be having a party you say…? A prince never hesitates to throw one—it shows his superiority to all the rest, u shi shi."

"I protest this decision; parties are nothing but a black hole of expenses: food, drinks, entertainment for the guests…I won't have it!"

"Oh but this is different Mammon dear; this once, Nono will provide us with the money because it isn't for personal use but something related to the family…"

She was genuially surprised by the effort Lussuria put into making this a reality; she'd only just told him about it, in an attempt to get Silvana into this house faster, and he fell right for it! She'd started feeling proud for her powers of manipulation. Plus, she'd said, it was about time they put their plan.

Of course, she had told Lussuria solely for the party and the plan, without any mention of her own agenda. But when he looked at her strangely and asked "what plan" she kindly reminded him that they had Nono's sons to kill and for the last one, the trick was to take some people on their own side…!

He'd said, "Aw, yes how could I forget" and immediately proceeded to promise her to talk everyone into it during lunch. And he was so far, so successful. She felt happy she had at least one ally in this crazy place.

"In that case I have no interest whatsoever; you can do whatever you want." Mammon said with finality; in his language that equalled: "go right ahead and do it".

She felt extremely happy now.

"I see everyone wants to throw her a party, huh? What the hell, then, I don't mind! What do you say boss?"

They all turned to him with great expectancy… "It's been a long time we hosted something. Nono will have a field day with trying to come up with security measures for this."

They all laughed…surprisingly, so did she.

.

.

She had no idea what to wear! She was standing with her back at the closet, three days later, and minutes before the event that was held for her sake, but she had no freaking idea on what to wear! Lussuria had done nothing but bring her beautiful gifts of silk these three days that she did nothing but rest, take care of herself and Xanxus – and occasionally pamper Squalo – yet she was still clueless on what she should wear.

It wasn't a matter of taste: Lussuria had the best taste and brought the prettiest and the most elegant pieces—clothes she would never be able to choose by herself, but they all seemed…too nice for her. Or too pretentious. She wanted to be in something comfortable and something more "her" for an event like this. And, she knew image was everything when making a fresh start.

At least, that's what Lussuria kept telling her.

She huffed and puffed and kept going through all of the things lying on her bed; if her hair weren't made specifically for this occasion – Xanxus' orders of course – she'd be pulling on them with great ferocity! Lussuria should have been by her side, too but in the end they encountered some last minute problems with some guests so he hurried downstairs, leaving her alone in the process.

And the guests were already there, all of them; she could hear them walking around and talking, like a faraway buzzing in her ears. She herself was supposed to appear later, to make an entrance. After all, this event was all about her and this once, not even Xanxus did he say otherwise. Well, he actually could, but decided not to and let her have her spotlight. He got to watch Nono struggle to keep everything under wraps and secure and that was enough for him.

She literally banged her head on the wall out of mere frustration. "Ouch…" she muttered rubbing her forehead.

She shook her head, disappointed. Why was she such a socially awkward slob? She sighed because she knew the answer but said nothing more about it lest she'd get depressed, too other than desperate. She sighed again and eyed her clothes one final time. An idea started taking shape in her mind's eye and she finally smiled…

Maybe banging her head on things helped in thinking!

.

"So where_ is_ our person of honour? She is fashionably but torturously late."

"Silvana dear, you'll get to see her in time, don't worry. Don't forget she learnt from me~" Lussuria said all pride and happiness "she can't but wait for everyone to be anxious…"

"You taught her well," she said devilishly as she winked at him.

Xanxus, on whose arm the dashing woman was hanging beautiful and elegant, simply yawned. Waiting never was one of his favourite past times but so long there was booze and a good buffet to occupy himself with, he let it slide. Ah, and of course entertainment, in the shape of his beloved father running around panicked to make sure nothing out of the ordinary will happen.

There was also the delight of watching Squalo fraternize with that woman, Michaela, who he was supposed to have under his influence so when they killed her "man", she would order the attack on Nono's most favoured son for the position of the tenth.

And then the lights went out!

A unanimous "AW!" was heard by all the guests – Nono almost ordered an attack on the Varia – but when music started playing, they all relaxed and looked around to see what's going to happen. After some seconds, the strobe lights turned to the head of the long stairs…and there she was!

The people all around muttered "awww" in complete awe and for a brief moment even her Varia co-workers stood there simply staring. She didn't look stunning or pretty…she simply looked _Varia_. And that was all they could say about her.

She took every step in her own time, giving everyone the chance to pay close attention to her and her outfit – and she didn't hurt like someone was trying to run a knife through her –: black boots that reached all the way to her knee; black form-fitting pants; long black trench coat with buttons, a belt and the Varia symbol attached on the left arm…

She was wearing her very "manly" – as Xanxus would put it – and inelegant – as Lussuria would put it – Varia uniform. The one that was just the same with Squalo's and Bel's and everyone's!

She had undone her hair from the elaborate style the hairdresser put them in and now, free and unbound, they were falling straight. Free and unbound as they were, they moved to her every step and got in the way of her elbows; free and unbound as they were, she enjoyed them verily. Now she was, too.

She stuck her chest out proud and took every step with confidence: no more back-tracking, no more looking back, no more vacillating. She was now a Varia member for good and her appearance ensured it: it was there for everyone to see. She was, from now on, just one more member of the squad. At that realisation, she felt much more proud than she thought she would—or should.

When she finally descended the stairs, she was overwhelmed by exactly how many people came to congratulate or talk to her in general!

"We are so proud you're a member of the family in all formality now!"

"Congratulations on your new spot!"

"The uniform was just made for you! You look lovely!"

"Finally, a woman so high up in the Varia!"

"Congratulations on your promotion!"

"You are magnificent!"

"You are brilliant!"

"You deserve this position!"

And more and more compliments of such nature made their way to her either by distantly catching them, or by people saying them fervently while shaking her hand or just small slaps on the back…

She was only smiling and nodding, a simple thank you ever leaving her lips. She was proud.

"Dear Franny-chan, despite you making me sad you chose none of my most wonderful dresses, I still think the choice of clothing is the best it could have been," Lussuria whispered as he made a fleeting appearance by her side, winking, only to be gone when:

"My dear lord;" a familiar voice said, causing her to turn around "little Francesca is a woman now! And she joins the Varia…how touching."

She felt her eyes widen by the mere sight of the Guardians of the ninth and him himself there; he was smiling affectionately and a hand stroke her head.

"Come, come now don't tease her Ganauche; our precious sweet flower. How are you feeling my dear child? Is this to your taste? Do you feel…well?"

"Ah yes! I haven't felt this good in a long time! It's a relief, to finally belong somewhere…"

Nono looked every bit of guilty yet happy that he should. "I'm glad this seems to be what you truly want."

"Under the circumstances, indeed!"

No matter what she said or how Nono felt, she couldn't help being cheerful: after all that happened they trusted her again and they gave her, the position she'd asked—she _deserved_. Not only did she belong, she actually earned it with many cracked bones to show for it. The thought made her elated: she won this right to be called Varia and no one, absolutely no one, could take that away from her.

Not even the approaching storm, namely Xanxus…

But before he could come and sulk and ruin the fabulous mood all around her, Nono blocked him from her field of vision by side stepping and holding out a hand. "I'm so very pleased to know you are doing well; but do you know who else would be pleased by the same information?"

She blinked. Was this a test? "Um…my late aunt, God rests her soul?"

"Ha ha, no Francesca, but I'm sure she most certainly would, too… I meant" he looked to the side purposefully, making her follow his eyes; when she saw what he looked at, she froze "your parents! And here they are…!"

She stared for well over a minute. Had she not been the centre of attention, she'd have gaped. Oh wait, she **was** gaping! Well, if she were she had a bloody good reason to: her parents were there! All the way from Spain did they come with no one telling her anything about it, just to see her appointment as a Varia member? That was fishy to say the least, dangerous to say the most.

_Why _**are **_they here anyway_? They hated the Varia and anything that had to do with violence…she closed her eyes suddenly, shutting her mouth, too and internally wished they hadn't come here looking for trouble or to humiliate her. Because they tended to want to do that a lot—humiliate her and treat her like a child.

She shook her head and looked at them again. "Mother…father…"

They, on the other hand, had frozen for a different reason: their daughter's reaction was enough to make them too awkward to make the first move; and to think they were about to hug and congratulate her…

"Honey-pie!" her father exclaimed finally and tackled her with a hug. "I'm so happy to see you again after such a long time! How I've missed you, my sweetie…! How have you been? Oh how you have grown! Your hair—look at your hair! And you're so tall! And you're so beautiful—a real lady!"

"If you think she's a real lady then the last time you saw her she must have been a toddler."

As her father was slowly killing her in a bone-crushing hug (in a quite literal way if one thought of her ribs), Xanxus interrupted his gushing. "And if you say this when she's wearing _this_ uniform, then you need glasses old man."

"Xanxus dear don't be so mean!"

"What? You two still like each other?" he snapped at Silvana's disapproval of his bashing.

In fact, this was the one time Francesca didn't mind him being mean; what he'd said might have been petty and cruel, but it also stung her parents and she knew it: when her father released her and started checking him out as her mother looked at him under her nose, she knew they minded.

"And who might you be young man?" her father asked absolute.

"Ah, he is Xanxus, _my_ son…and your daughter's boss from now on." Nono interrupted to calm both parties down. Despite the murderous look at the "son" part, Xanxus remained generally satisfied as he sipped a little out of his drink.

"Is that so?" he asked truly surprised "I'm Sergio de Luca, Francesca's father."

"And I'm Daniela de Luca, her mother, and I demand some respect from you _Xanxus_, Nono's **son**."

"I'm Xanxus, _the boss of Varia_; my biggest achievement in life certainly isn't being his son," he snapped pointing with his finger at Nono "and I too demand some respect into my own house!"

Francesca almost felt the thunder between them and she could swear Xanxus was pissed enough to have his temperature rise; she went between them, wearing her disapproving look, and turned to her mother. "I demand you do not talk down to my boss mother; and I would appreciate if you both could talk to me only in private from now on."

When her mother tried to protest, her father held her back; whispering something in her ear, apparently he managed to change her mind and she simply bit her tongue. "Very well; but you'll have to make sure_ he_ is not around."

And with her finger still pointing at Xanxus, she made her exit…Sergio did not follow. He put his arm around Francesca and stood there proud. "I'm staying here so I can see all the people who come to congratulate you. My baby is now an adult…!" he added moved in the end and looked at her affectionately.

She rolled her eyes. "This will be a long night," she muttered as she patted her father's hand.

"What, no daddy issues?"

"I figured you have enough of those for the both of us…"

"Do you _want_ to die, or is it something you randomly decided?"

"Do not threaten my daughter!"

"Xanxus!" Silvana exclaimed scandalised yet again, but he didn't seem to care all that much about either of them; he pretended they were nothing but noise.

For the most part, that was true…

The night passed blissfully for the young woman; her mother didn't bother her at least for the most of the evening and her father was moderate. Her brothers hadn't come, she realised with great relief, and the only one she had to cope with-truly cope with, was her dear mom. But that was half-taken care of by Xanxus' behaviour that kept her at a safe distance.

Nono's heirs appeared at one point, with Lussuria and Squalo accompanying them, too and she was all but heart-broken when she saw what kind and thoughtful man she had set out to kill. And given she was the one who came up with the plan, she was sure he'd die and that made her all the more sad.

Even Dino had appeared in front of her that night to congratulate her, and she could honestly say _he_ was the most pleasurable presence. She'd liked him greatly when she first met him - he was polite, kind and generous - but now he was all the more charming towards her. He even went as far to kiss her hand. Of course, he never got much further than that because Xanxus all but hit him for it.

She still didn't understand why he liked making her life miserable so much other than the obvious reason – he liked it – but she knew she just had to roll with it. Thus rolling she did.

But, the night wouldn't be without an_ incident_. One time her mother did come close and there was a bit of a fall out between them: she claimed, once more, that Francesca was now a disgrace to the whole family, since she became a Varia member, meaning a person involved in assassinations.

It was a ghastly occupation she, as a scientist, had chosen for herself, Daniela continued relentlessly, saying she would never put to true good use her exceptional skills, if they were solely used for killing. She disapproved, she wanted her daughter to know she did and she even had the nerve to say Lucretia would also think she was doing a horrible, horrible thing.

That was when Francesca sort of lost it and her father thundered his wife with the most reprobating look he could; how dared she bring up her aunt, she'd said, how dared she claim to know what she'd say? Her aunt, she then informed, would be more than thrilled to know she got out of that house! She would be pleased to hear that she was doing something _she_ wanted with her life for a change!

-The part where she chose to join the Varia on her own free will might have been a lie, but just a little. -

Her mother had absolutely no right to judge her! After all, she was the one who abandoned her and left her to her sister so even if Francesca had done the most horrendous thing ever, it would still be both Daniela's fault yet at the same time she still wouldn't have any say in the matter!

Then she stomped her foot stubbornly and turned around and left her alone…or else she was sure the whole reception would hear her and she didn't want _that_, not when she had Squalo in the team: they'd say after him, she was the loudest member. And no one wanted that title – and someone had already unwisely enough called her Squalo 2.0 due to the long hair –. So she did the only thing she could: she turned her back distinctively and stormed away…

Then came Xanxus and trash-talked her parents and her herself but she couldn't care less; she merely shrugged and watched him go upstairs with Silvana still attached on his arm…thank God for that matter. Her trick worked. Thank Lussuria anyway, for he organised everything. She sighed with great relief; she hoped now he would stop harassing her; it was a true wonder how she hadn't come out of that room raped that day…

She was more than glad everything worked out for her in the end; her mother was a sudden addition that caused her to falter for a little while, but she managed to gather her wits and face her. Well, she _had_ been talking back to Xanxus lately—she's been living with him and lived to tell the tale in fact! Thus her mother, one fragile, weak woman wouldn't scare her into submission.

.

She cried a lot that night; she could be as brave and logical as she wanted in front of other people, but when she was alone, at her most intimate thoughts, she knew she would always crave for her mother's approval, even if not consciously. She would have wanted and _liked_ to hear her say, "you did well". Why _couldn't_ she be happy for her own child? Especially when she did all in her power to make her life miserable.

She was too young to comprehend concepts such as loyalty and sacrifice; when she was given away, all she could feel was rejection and the overwhelming sensation of injustice. Why her? She was the youngest, not the oldest…

So she cried and cried and cried; but her mother didn't feel sorry for her. She was even depressed for some time but none cared but her aunt. She was all-alone in a place she couldn't understand but they didn't go in the trouble of explaining to her—and that woman she still wanted to satisfy. Why? She didn't deserve it…and she knew it. It was just, a complex she had. Just like her liking Xanxus. Oh wait, she didn't!

She wiped at her tears and looked at herself in the mirror: puffy eyes, tired and so very self-pitying...

If it hadn't been for her mother then she wouldn't be stuck in an empty house with none but her aunt; if it weren't for her mother she wouldn't be stuck in the Varia! If it weren't for her mother, she wouldn't be the scientist she was today…! Well, even if it was her aunt who taught her everything, she was there because her mother sent her.

_So she didn't do only _**bad**_ things_…she took comfort in the thought. _But no more crying_, she made up her mind and held her head high as she took it out of the pillow she used as a muffler, _and no more trying to please her. I am my own person._

She smiled at her resolution but couldn't help spilling tears over it as well. That day she was truly becoming an adult. She sniffed and wiped at her eyes and blew her nose and looked straight ahead, beyond her reflection. No easy ways out from now on, whatever she decided to do with herself would be her own decision—her own problem and her own fault. Either she folded under Xanxus' oppression or not, would be her personal ruling.

She breathed a fresh air that night, the air of change. Hopefully, it would turn out the best.

.

.

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><p><strong>AN**: End! I hope you enjoyed dears, and please leave a review on the way out!


	13. One down, two to go

**A/N**: Fast updates for fast writing! A good thing I have a very particular plan in mind! Hope you enjoy the latest chapter~!

Thank you my dear beta reader, **Orihara Izaya** and everyone who's reviewed faved and alerted!

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><p>.<p>

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The morning, she woke up to something strange…she felt like someone was banging on her thoughts. She tried to ignore it, turning the other way instinctively, but it simply kept on annoying her. She groaned her protest in her sleep, but that feeling of urgency to wake up didn't leave her nor did that pestering…nudging? Poking sensation? She didn't know how to call it.

"Wake up misses S…"

She vaguely recognised Bel's voice and his devilish tone. She chose to ignore it, in favour of catching some more shuteye. But he wouldn't take no for an answer. "Wake up misses S, come on…!"

The poking didn't stop, too; then she realised Bel was actually doing it, and if the piercing sensation was correct he was using one of his knives for it…but she didn't give in. "I wanna sleep s'more, go away…!"

"Wake up or the boss will be pissed, shi shi…"

"Let him be; he's got Silvana to calm him down."

She groaned and grumped and pulled her pillow over her head. She had no idea what the time was, but to wake her up now felt more than brutal to her…

"Oooooh, d'you hear that tranny? She's not as stupid as I thought!"

"Bel-chan," Lussuria's distinctive voice was heard "she's a doctor for the boss; why would she be _stupid_? Socially awkward, yes; completely inept certainly…but not stupid!"

She complained for the noise – and the insults – by making an inarticulate sound and turned the other way, thoroughly ignoring them.

"Of course she isn't! Lussuria spoke the truth! How else would the boss allow her to keep taking care of him?"

_Oh my God, is that Levi I hear?_ _**While I'm sleeping in only a nightgown**__!? _

Mentally she screamed, but physically she sprang and sat up. "Ah…! What the hell is wrong with you, bringing Levi in he—"

"What's your problem with the nightgown anyway, scum? Days ago you were parading around half naked!"

"Oh my god, Squalo, Mammon? What the hell are you all doing in my room…?" she yawned, holding on to her ribs. "And what does _that_ have to do with anything?"

"What do you mean you crazy broad? Didn't you just say you were shocked Levi is here and you're only in your nightgown?"

"I said that _out loud_?"

"Why, you think I read minds? I fucking don't!"

Despite her shouting though, she was still as sleepy as a minute ago; had it not been for the mini heart attack, she'd probably be snoring again. She felt her eyes close by themselves and she made quite the effort to keep them open.

She yawned. Then she looked at the baby.

"I am here only because it costs less to watch them than let them ran free…"

"Well, _we're_ here because boss is with Silvana and we're bored because if we go annoy her it will also annoy him and no one wants that. So we came here to annoy the _other_ woman."

She'd no idea why, but the "other" part stang.

"Don't listen to Bel-chan;" Lussuria rebuked with edge in his voice "we just wanted breakfast cooked by none other than you…"

"You know I think I'll believe Bel on this one Lussuria…" she yawned again. "What time is it…?"

"It's nine thirty so get up and make us food already!" Squalo nudged her with his foot and pushed her off the bed. "Come on come on come on! We don't have the day!"

"All right, I'm coming…jeez you're impatient," she replied, from the floor she was now honestly lying upon in great comfort. Her rag was amazing after all…

"Great! In that case, I want pancakes!" Bel first called out his order, actually sitting on her. Her "ow"s went unnoticed.

"I want honey cereal with chocolate milk!" Levi claimed after him.

Then Lussuria joined with an overblown: "Oooh, I want something to be good for my amazing silhouette dear Franny-chan~!"

"Tch! I want a good big breakfast to keep me going till lunch! I want eggs and bread and milk and juice and cheese and bacon and-!"

"You bastards are blowing our daily expenses way out of proportion. Especially you Squalo."

"No; those will be like leftovers from the boss anyway; or do you forget that he's on a diet of his own since he came up…?"

Mammon became dark at the memory and turned away…he then proceeded to leave them alone. His misery was too much to handle. She kind of related to him. She might had no idea why it was money that made him like that, but that was too much of a pitiful expression for anyone to wear.

Poor baby.

"Well, if Bel decides to get off of me, I will - in fact - gladly cook your breakfast."

"Can't you carry me?"

"No."

"Come on, carry me."

"Why in earth when I'm in such pain?"

"Because I'm a prince!"

"That's not a legitimate reason so shut the hell up and get off!"

Because they knew he wouldn't do that, Squalo promptly kicked him off of her. "There, now get your ass off and move."

"Thank you!" she said breathless as she scurried off the wonderful rag; she moved to hug him yet again but he blocked her once more. She no longer minded though, since she knew he would be nice to her instead at something else. He did have a good side; you just had to work really hard to bring it to the surface is all…at least for Squalo's case. Lussuria was always kind to her so he enjoyed the most out of her.

So she cooked them their food and even her boss's and his lover – she was certain, had she not done so, he would do something to her later: let her starve for a couple of days, have her sleep on the porch, maybe punish her buy having her care for Levi…she wanted none of those, especially the last part –.

After she prepared everything for the rest, she did her boss's favourite foods, threw some fruit and cereal in there for Silvana, too and went to his chambers. She knocked on the door. She waited.

"Come in," she heard after some time, and she pushed the door open with her elbow – both her hands were too occupied with the tray of foods-.

As she entered, the strong smell of closeness and sex wandered through the air; her nose twitched involuntarily but, sadly, she couldn't block the scents. Everywhere, there were clothes and generally there was a mess of things all over: broken things on the carpets – she suspected because when he threw his or her clothes, he didn't pay attention what they knocked over –, clothes flung away, blankets on the floor…

She literally stuck her nose up, and gave them their tray. Not only was she pissed they made such a mess that she would be cleaning up, but they also made a big deal out of being extremely naked, extremely comfortable and extremely giggle-ish –for Silvana's part –. And she was far too shy or inexperienced – she couldn't tell – to put up with that sort of behaviour.

"Leave it there," Xanxus ordered, nodding at a now empty bedside table. There used to be a lovely ashtray, a vase and a clock. Now there was nothing…

She did it and immediately turned about; she almost ran out of the room, blushing, annoyed and very, very uncomfortable. Did they really have to be so naked and so casual about it? And she could swear she heard Silvana laugh as she was going—that only made her blushing worse! Oh and did she mention they were naked there, for everyone to see?

"Why the long face?" Squalo asked as he came across her in the hallway, as she was still mulling over her thoughts alone. He was just about to head out; she could tell from his gear.

When she noticed his questions, she looked at him annoyed yet somewhat bashful. "The boss is **not** shy."

"Ha ha, I see; and neither is Silvana! Mainly because she says she has nothing to hide…" he "explained" wiggling his eyebrows; she pouted.

"Then she should go to a nudist beach, not here! They both should!"

"Oh…you **are** shy. Got to tell the guys about it!" he said and trailed off, with his cell phone in his hands, calling someone. If she had someone to bet, she'd say that was Bel or Lussuria.

She shook her head hopeless; she'd forever be looked-down upon and ignored.

.

.

The more time passed, the more Francesca got used to Silvana's and other women's nakedness. Well, Xanxus' too certainly but she was always careful enough not to see anything or make any stupid comments that set him off just because (he is a psychopath). She hadn't seen him too interested in women before this phase, as well but apparently he was feeling promiscuous lately.

Oh well, she didn't really mind that; she only minded those awkward mornings she had to bring in breakfast.

Also, though she would never speak of that to any living creature, she had vaguely started wondering just how good he was in bed if so many women were more than willing to jump in with him though they knew he regarded them as nothing but pieces of meat. Then again, maybe that was as far as their personal regards went as well. Yet she was still rather curious...and that was, as much she would allow herself to think. No need to imagine anything else when she could actually hear them all night...

Oh why had her mind gotten so dirty? Was it because of the men around her or was that just her own brain...?

"Misses S, good news!" Squalo announced as he walked into her makeshift laboratory.

"What? Is it Friday three days earlier?" she asked distractedly as she was looking through her microscope at some blood samples. "If not, then don't bother me till sundown."

"VOOOI! What are you talking about? It's already three o'clock in the night, morning, whatever and I can't make time go faster, too so it's still Tuesday! Well, technically Wednesday."

"Well, darn," she said completely emotionlessly looking up from her work "now shoo." She snapped as she looked down.

But how the hell did time pass so much without her notice...?

"Will you just fucking listen to me and stop being such a pain?"

She sighed and obliged him; he smirked, content and then full of pride informed her of some truly shocking news: "We have managed to kill the first of the boss's sons, Enrico."

Just as she was looking at him, she kept it up; and so did he, with his huge smirk and his expectant eyes...and they kept looking at each other like that for some time. Until—

"Oh my God, you killed Enrico! You did it, you really did it guys," she exclaimed amazed and full of happiness she jumped on him. Her ribs hurt, but not that much anymore, seeing they were almost healed.

So happy was Squalo himself, he allowed her to hug him as he let out a booming laugh. "I know! We are amazing, right?"

He hit her on the back – more like cracked her spine– approvingly. "We staged it, just like we planned, and now everyone will think it was from the antagonising faction or a rival family altogether! We left him there and he's already been found thus we'll know for certain either they will come after us or not by tomorrow.

Though I don't think so; they will surely think of us, especially Nono, but with no clues, even _he_ can't come after us."

"Oh, you're so brilliant! I'm so jealous I only get to cook up serums and drugs while you do all the fun work!" she said wistfully as she took his hands in hers and gave him the well-practised puppy-look ever.

"_You_ call killing people fun?" He laughed again. "What have we done to you? Or, you truly are misses S." He shrugged in the end smirking...she hit him.

"Oh shut up; I wish you could take me with you next time...! But I know you can't; not as long as I work on this project for Nono."

"What is that anyway? You've been so mysterious about it."

"That's _because_" she grabbed the file away from Squalo's hands when he only just got it "Nono himself doesn't want anyone other than me knowing about it in this house."

Squalo pouted very childlike as she rearranged everything on her desk that was close enough for him to catch a glimpse of, just to discern which file he was going after; when his eyes moved when she grabbed the bottom left folder, she narrowed her eyes interested. He had gotten his sights on one of the most integral folders.

_Interesting intuition_, she thought.

"Whatever;" he said as he rose to his feet unsteadily – she suspected tiredness was the reason – "just go to sleep and rest."

"And you came here just to tell me Enrico died and I should go to bed?"

He shrugged uncaringly. "...yes; boss's orders."

"And when will you be taking care of the other one? Massimo?"

"Heh" chuckled Squalo as he stood at the threshold "soon enough. I'll tell you the moment he's done in."

"OK; thanks for the info. Goodnight!"

"You, too..."

So they managed to kill one and then comes the other; how nice. And she wasn't even sarcastic; she was actually very pleasantly surprised because now that the one was out of the way and the other got in line, her own kill was very close at hand. Somehow that made her excited. She knew it was fitting for an assassin, too but she doubted it was healthy. Yet somehow she didn't feel that crazy with the rest around her...

Oh boy. Her ethical compass had gone haywire. What about her dream to become a good doctor who helps the helpless? Oh well, everything came with a price. Though she would still like to be that person, working at a warzone and have people run frantically around her in the hectic environment...

As if Xanxus would allow her. Maybe she could try though...she shrugged and went back to her microscope. She had already forgotten Squalo's suggestion, Lussuria's stress and boss's order: she was very close to her first personal breakthrough as far as he research was concerned and no one would stump her inspiration!

The next morning of course, she cursed that decision of hers seeing she ended up with the biggest headache she could ever remember suffering from, but also her eyes were so red and puffy, she could be crying all night! Now Lussuria would definitely notice...and Squalo would whine for disobeying him. Just great!

As she made her way to the kitchen for her tenth rather large cup of coffee – that was the best way she could cope without having to resort to toothpicks – she saw the sun was already up. When she looked at the watch on the wall – she had taken hers off the moment she saw it was five o'clock in the morning – she read ten.

As in, the morning. As in, she would have to start cooking again if she didn't want her hair tugged on. As in, she would rather eat dirt to showing up in front of Xanxus, apparently having disobeyed his—

There was a loud knock on the door that completely snapped her out of her musing. _Drat_, she thought, _now more people will see me like a goddamn panda_.

"Good morning-..." she said as she took another sip of her coffee.

It was Nono's men. "Hello gentlemen; I believe you're two days early...I mean, I know I joked how I wish it was Friday so I could go to Nono but this is a bit ridiculous. Are you watching me, or something? It's a little spooky, thinking about it..."

The two men in matching black suits and matching black shades remained expressionless. "The ninth needs you over at the mansion now; it is for a different reason than your research."

"...What could it be about?"

"..." They looked at each other, gave a curt nod – how in earth they managed to communicate with their eyes hidden, she had no idea –, and they took her by the arms.

"Wh-KYAH! Put me down!" she screamed as her huge cup fell on the floor and broke into many pieces; she felt the contexts spilling on her, but she disregarded it for now. "What the hell is wrong with you, I never said I wouldn't come?"

And damn it she was wearing one of the skirt-themed uniforms, she couldn't flail!

But they stopped a little surprised by her statement anyhow. "Good. Put me down now." They obeyed. "Marvellous; now can I go alert someone I must go or should I-?"

"The second," both chimed simultaneously and flexed their muscles.

Was that supposed to mean "or else" in a threatening kind of way...? If yes, they did a good job 'because she was! She smiled in an awkward fashion and gulped, almost audibly. Oh how pretty a situation...

She was then escorted into a large limo, at the very back seats, where she was nearly shoved inside the vehicle. They proceeded to cram her in between them, making sure she wouldn't move the slightest. She figured they feared she had the Varia on some sort of speed dial thus the smallest of gestures could mean anything...

And then she realised, as she looked at her clothes that had been stained with the coffee, that these men were there for Enrico's death—to question her about it. No, not them; _Nono_ would question her about it! Hence the fear of contacting them...but if they did all these so mysteriously, didn't it automatically mean they had no real evidence it was them at fault and they needed an inside person to fess up?

If so, then she wouldn't be moved! She would keep her lips sealed, play it cool and clueless and pretend she knows nothing about this. In fact, she would say there was no way they'd do something like this and she wouldn't know about it and thus they didn't do it! She'd lie to Nono's face and either he believed her or not she wouldn't leave any "holes" in her reasoning and make him fold even if he thought they still did it!

Yes, she'd do that. She held her head high and smiled at the men with new-found good mood; she probably looked demented, but she didn't mind...

The ride was uncharacteristically long and boring; usually she would have all the pretty scenery to distract herself with, but this once the tinted windows were up and appeared to be tinted on both sides! She could see nothing but their reflections and the bulge that hid this person's gun...

They finally arrived and first the two men left the car and only then did they allow her to get out; they even opened the door they wanted her to get out of – the one on her right –...and when she did, she saw nothing but unfamiliar places.

Huh.

She was standing in front of a garden of large proportions sprinkled with bushes and grass statues, which led to a vast mansion! It was so big - and layered even, truly layered, - she actually gaped. The garden seemed to go on behind as well, while she could hardly distinguish between that and the dotted marble pavilions.

Where was she? And why such special treatment over this...? Oh yeah, because they were talking about a murdered person who was the freaking heir of the family! How could she forget so easily?

As she was just standing there, watching in awe, the two large, tall men ushered her inside. When they guided her through the garden and into this huge piece of wonderful architecture, she felt the hairs on the nape of her neck stand straight: as she entered the building, a huge parlour spread out towards the right while an extravagantly decorated for her tastes flat of stairs led to the first floor right in front of the door, five metres inside.

She was led up those fancy marble stairs, with little statues making the railing, and ended up on a big corridor with many doors…and each door had two men with identical clothing and attitude to the ones leading her around.

Did that mean the room of their destination would be the one with no men outside? Bah, no; if Nono, the boss was in there she could bet two of his guardians would be outside and the rest in there with him.

As they kept walking through the big corridor, she finally saw an end to it: to big wooden doors stood there, grand, guarded by none other than Visconti, the cloud guardian…made sense. When he saw them, he saluted with a curt nod and stepped aside; but his strict and unforgiving glare was kept on the girl…

She gulped again, hoping it wasn't heard, smiled her other awkward smile and walked inside as the double doors opened.

She was greeted with a rather peculiar sight when she was allowed in: Nono was sitting on a beautiful table, like the ones one sees in historical movies – the whole place and especially this room gave that feeling, with its sofas and its vases and its paintings and its bits – while the rest of his guardians stood around him, preoccupied with something. Only one was sitting down, Nougat, and he was, too reading a report.

At the very far end of the room though, he noticed something quite odd: there was a small creature, deceptively reminding her of Mammon, standing in the corner, hidden in the shadows. She saw nothing but the outline of a very traditional hitman-hat and a general small figure.

If this entire charade was a just a "prop" to make her feel threatened and nervous, then good for them, she really was scared. In fact, this was the first time in her life she felt she was scared in the presence of the Ninth…but she had other things to worry about. Such as, the Varia and what they would ever do to her if she let anything slip.

Suddenly, the reason why Squalo came and talked to her became very clear…

Sadistic bastards! They knew this would happen yet no one clearly warned her about this! They wanted to watch her squirm—or at least to know she'd squirm as there was no way they could see her now. She mentally growled her frustration, balled her fists and strode to the place they indicated she sat down: across from the Ninth Head of the Vongola family.

"Welcome my dear," said Nono in a mellow yet somehow scary voice "and allow me to discuss with you and ask you a few questions about a serious matter."

He waited for her to react before he continued; when he got her approval, a nod accompanied by two seemingly unaware eyes, he went on. "Yesterday night, my eldest son and first candidate for the position of Tenth, was murdered."

She looked at him surprised, her eyes growing a little bit in size with each passing moment. "Th-that's horrible…I'm sorry for your loss," she gave him condolence, pretending to be lost for other words. "How…?"

He deemed her reaction satisfactory, for what she did not know and wished she wouldn't find out, and only then did he go on. "Thank you for your concern my dear child…but, I think you would know how."

She pretended to be completely unaware, slightly offended even. He didn't buy it and moved on. "And even if you do not know how exactly, I am certain you knew even before me he was to be killed. I am perfectly sure you knew of his death before I told you, too. In other words, I want you to answer a few questions concerning the plan behind his murder."

_Oh damn…! This man is so good! And I can't lie for shit—he'll see right through me! And everyone is watching me as well…! I have to say something quick!_ She opened her mouth to speak but immediately shut it closed. _You fool! If you talk now, you'll sound guiltier than Xanxus who planned it! Shut it and keep playing it cool._

She crossed her legs the other way; she held her head high, she stuck her chest out and looked greatly offended. She pouted for good measure. "Well, what do you have to say to that?"

"I am hurt; both I and my pride for calling me a liar and a deceptive person."

The men around her seemed to communicate; when the wordless conversation ended, they proceeded to grab a chair each and sit down. She felt cornered, like an animal.

"Why don't we start being honest my dear child?" his voice held a little edge and for the first time she felt threatened by him directly. The room, as big as it was, felt too small.

She tried to protest to his indirect accusation, for appearances sake, but his raised hand silenced her. "I shall ask you questions and you shall answer to the best of your ability. First question: who planned this attack?"

The down-to-business tone unnerved her but she didn't lose her cool. "I do not know."

He stopped, as if to try and control his temper but the smile was still there. "Do not take me for a foolish old man; just answer me truthfully."

"I am; tis not my fault my answers do not satisfy you."

Now, his good humour seemed to leave him altogether and a wry smirk took over his face. "Do not test my patience; be sincere. Tell me, did you know of this attack beforehand? Was the Varia planning it all along?"

The calmness of his voice was scarier than him shouting because it hid all of his turbulence, and the real storm lay hidden and mysterious; she hesitated. "Wasn't it them who did it? Don't try to act as if this is a far cry from the truth or something inconceivable; he had motive, time and opportunity."

He kept bombarding with well-thought out hypothesis and speculation that was the truth; yet she had to lie! She gulped, feeling more trapped by the second and oh so foolish for allowing the guardians to circle her like that. She reacted! "He's still recovering! How could he ever-!?"

"Do not be coy with me my dear child" and the venom was almost tangible "he would never go and kill someone himself. He would have Squalo plan it and the whole Varia execute it. And I _**have**_ been noticing Squalo and Lussuria befriending certain people from Massimo's faction lately…can you tell me this is all a coincidence?

Can you _look at me_" he spelled out because she was avoiding his gaze "and honestly tell me he has nothing up his sleeve? He is a smart man—too smart. I know; I raised him. So tell me" he stood straighter than ever and glared at her "is he or is he not the one behind this?"

She tried to speak, but words failed her. This once it was true. She made a couple of attempts more but they too were lost. She cursed herself for her weakness and how guilty she must look…and everything hang in the balance.

She tried to match his stance and not think about every single guardian, Visconti excluded, breathing down her neck. Difficult, but she still tried. "I know…" she tested her voice but it was shaky; she tried to fix it. "I know many things."

She managed not to stutter. That was good. "I know that many things aren't as they appear to be; I know sometimes we blame the wrong people because we really need an answer."

"Such audacity-!" Croquant exclaimed scandalised.

But she didn't indulge him. She knew _she_ was the person of interest so if she kept speaking, he'd have to stop because they just had to listen. "I know that ever since he woke up, Xanxus has been doing nothing but lazing around all day, being self-indulgent to make up for all the time spent in the ice.  
>He is insufferable and over-demanding so I get to be by his side for most of the day. And even though I have," here her voice shook a little again, a sign she was lying – she only hoped they wouldn't pick up on it too much – "I never heard him speak of killing off any of your other sons. So please, stop blaming him for this. It is not his fault."<p>

"Heh" did Ganauche and the derisive undertone scorched her "you didn't think of one little detail when you brought her in for questioning boss: now she's Varia, too. Why _wouldn't_ she lie to you, too just as Bel would?"

"Yes, I am Varia" she snapped, for some reason pissed off at something that was actually true "but I am also a scientist and I do not care for blood!"

"Ah no, but you _do_ care about my son, don't you?"

Suddenly, all thoughts froze in her mind. "Wha, wh-what…?" what did he mean by that?

"You're forced to treat him and make sure he is always healthy, aren't you? In other words, _you_, my dear child, have become attached."

When he saw her blush and pout and look away, he pushed more. "You care for him daily and you know exactly what he needs: enabling. He needs an ally, someone he can use. Out of all the Varia, you're the only one who can feed me with plausible _false_ information, are you not?"

She looked away completely now, either ashamed or angry – or both – and he gave his final blow. "So be a good girl and tell me his plan. Does he intend to kill all of them? Or will he stop at this one?"

"I…"

All this time she was thinking and thinking of a way out of this mess unscathed; she realised though, she couldn't do that. She had to pick a side, as this was such an occasion where you're either with them or against them. Well, she lived with a bunch of crazy assassins so she figured she'd better take their side, for better or worse.

But was that really the reason she chose to support Xanxus? Throughout Nono's speech, she'd felt a rather peculiar sense of defensiveness; she was being guarded for the first time around the old man for no other reason than him accusing Xanxus! Of something that he did even, but she was still feeling as if he was accusing him wrongly!

She had felt a lot of things, which had been new to her altogether – such as the need to defend her torturer and abuser and not let him take his rightful punishment for reasons unknown – but when he called her that, "a good girl" she was ready to snap! When her voice shook this time, it did out of pure anger.

"I…you are right. I do know what your son needs, and I do care for him which is why I find this as repulsive as offensive.

You think Xanxus needs to be left alone and then condemned for everything that happens around him? Do you think he needs nothing but your contempt and your accusations? I know you do have reason to suspect him and I know of your cross, for keeping him alive despite all who said otherwise and everything that happened, it's huge but-…what about his cross? Why are you forcing more sins on it just because there's probable cause?

All he needs is your acceptance and love, either he wants it—he admits or not. Not this; never this!  
>And I ask you, Nono, head of the family, if that were true and Xanxus had done it, how would you punish him?<br>And then I ask you this: if it turns out Massimo or Federico did it, how will you punish_ them_…? Will the severity be the same? I am sure they are no angels after all."

When she finally took a breath, she noticed the man for the first time: he seemed to have shrunk a little in size, yet he was as respectful as ever. His eyes hadn't lost their glint of wit and watchfulness while he still tried to weigh her words.

She deemed it a satisfactory result and then she wanted to have a cool closure; she imitated Xanxus casual behaviour and added something of her own: she scoffed and sat back in her chair, though nearly as comfortable it was as Nono's she still managed to droop down enough to be as relaxed as she wanted, and crossed her legs again.

"All I'm saying is…this is the period of you trying to name your successor—I know it, you know it, everyone knows it. You think Xanxus thinks he has a chance even when the others are off the table? He's untouchable and we _all _know that.

So before you blame one son, look at what the other does. And if your son Massimo is "suddenly" seen more frequently with Squalo and Lussuria doesn't that work both ways? What if he intends to use them or already did? Isn't that our—the Varia's job?" she pretended to slip up. "To help people kill other people? Why are you so against a concept you yourself have created?"

She shrugged. "Besides, it could have been someone from another family trying to throw us into discord…! So I basically do not know. They haven't discussed anything of the sort with me and they discuss those things with me generally so that's a "no", it was definitely not Xanxus' idea and I have no idea about their "side jobs". And that's about it."

She shrugged again, even more distinctively this once, and put her hands in her pockets…

Brow Nie Jr gave a small chuckle, followed by Ganauche. Nougat put a hand on her shoulder – something that spelt mixed signals to Francesca making her both terrified and proud – and Schnitten, the most silent of all, simply stood.

Nono followed his example and Francesca followed Nono's. He smirked at her, but not so smugly; there was a tone of knowing yet resignation to it.

"Very well my dear child. That is all we needed to know from you. You may leave these premises and be escorted back to your own."

She gave a small bow, a little rigid indeed, and turned heel immediately. She left serious and poker-faced, heading back to the limo that brought her there. And all the way, her heart pounded so fast, she thought it would leave her chest!

.

.

"So what did we get out of this?" Croquant asked a little disappointed.

"We know where she stands." Visconti replied as he made an appearance at Nono's side.

"I agree; that's got to count for something, right? We already suspected Xanxus is involved—she added nothing to that, but didn't retract either." Ganauche said in a very carefree attitude, only to lighten the mood around him.

Nono sighed. "Indeed we gained nothing new; we'll have to keep on looking. But it's true: the Varia badge is now burnt into her arm."

"You should have said "brain"; I pity that girl, though. One can only guess what sort of lies Xanxus fed her…"

"Err, knowing her, my good man Nougat, I'd say she's pretty much asking for it."

Everyone looked at Ganauche a little doubtful but when he only shrugged as if it wasn't his fault, sweat running down his face, they let it be.

"What do _you_ think Reborn?" asked Nono in the end.

That baby at the corner came in the light, slowly approaching everyone. "I think Xanxus found himself another follower. We won't be getting any information out of her, since we want this done in a civil manner. We should keep that close eye on her but we cannot actually infiltrate the Varia anymore.

And that causes problems."

"Indeed; now we must be very careful on how we tread and if we want to accuse them." Brow Nie Jr said solemnly.

"Don't worry; we'll figure something out."

.

.

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><p><strong>AN**: And the first "brother" is killed! Developments, developments, developments! Hope you enjoyed and please leave a review!


	14. Pissed

**A/N**: New chapter because I'm on a roll! And I wanted to show pissed off, dangerous Francesca to the world! Thanks those who reviewed/faved/alerted and enjoy the latest chapter, beta'd by **Orihara Izaya**.

* * *

><p>Her, lying to Nono? That felt more like an out of body experience than a memory every singe time she tried to remember why she was in a car with strange men. When she got home and saw the time – only then did she dare to see a clock of any sort – she read three. As in three in the afternoon; as in, holly hell she's been away far too long! <em>Hasn't anyone noticed<em>, she wondered, _I've been gone for hours!_

The first person she ran into was Squalo. He was walking by, carefree and calm, when she called out for him. "Oh hey misses S, what d'you want?"

"Wha-what do you mean what do I want? Won't you ask me where I was?"

"…No. Why?"

"Shouldn't you!? I've been gone for five whole hours—didn't anyone _notice_?"

"Ah, that; since you mention it, don't go like that again no matter who's pulling you out; especially without telling us. It's not allowed for you remember? Now go back to-…whatever it is you go back to."

Flabbergasted, and gaping, she went after him. "_Excuse_ me? Are you positively mad? You've just admitted you know a bunch of Nono's men came dragging me out! Why didn't you come for me? I was-!"

"To be taken there _alone_; if I'd come for you, wouldn't it be suspicious? I know_ nothing_ of the murder so why would I be near you?"

She hesitated. "So…you know what happened?"

He nodded "duh" as he kept walking. "Do you all know?"

This once he actually said it: "_Duh_, genius; we know everything. We even know you said nothing to Nono. So now go back to whatever it is you're usually going back to and leave me alone. I have to go."

"To Michaela?"

"V-VOOOOOOOOOOOI! What's with the guessing? Yes, her shut up! It's not like I like it so don't rub it in!"

She giggled but apologised and looked at him…only to see he'd already left her behind. Prick! But he'd said he knew not only what happened but also that she said nothing. How could he know? It isn't as if Xanxus trusts her that much—not taking the chance to kill him does not mean sheltering his crimes…

Something fishy is going on here.

She puckered her lips and put her balled fists on her waist and just stood there, to think it through. How can they know…? They can't have hacked into Nono's security system or should she say, even if they had hacked into it they would get nothing out of it as the room she was put in for interrogation was the only one without a single camera or microphone. There was no way they'd see or hear anything like that.

Also, she doubted Nono would call them up and tells them, he or any other of his men there, so it wasn't a "human" factor. It must have been science that did the trick then…! But how?

She stomped her foot on the ground and, dejected, went to her room to get her boss's serums and then make sure he consumes them. Maybe, if he was in a good enough mood, he would divulge a little of his knowledge.

When she neared his room though, she saw he wasn't alone…and it wasn't female company he was having. In fact, it looked like a private Varia meeting with all but Squalo and her invited. That alone made her curious enough to want to eavesdrop.

Combined with the fact ever since she came back they gave her the feeling they were all holed up somewhere and Squalo appeared only because he was leaving –and it was a safe assumption to think he was here earlier – that actually covered the distance between wanting and actively going after what she wants. So she approached the half-closed door, as deftly as she could, crouched and ready to react.

She peeked inside.

She saw them all sitting or standing over something in the middle of a table, something she could not discern from her point of view, and she was correct in thinking they were all engaging themselves with it—either the thing itself or whatever its function was.

Content her assumptions were verified, she eavesdropped; and what she heard, she thought was wrong because who else's voice but hers did she hear! She shot back surprised, almost fell over! Immediately though, she looked around in hopes no one saw or heard her and when she made it sure, she went back to her place at the door. Then she tried to listen to what she was saying better…

_Oh damn, that sounded so bad in my head; have they recorded my voice and play it now? How? Oh, wait a minute. Is…is that how they knew I said nothing to Nono?_

Before she even tries to make out her own words, she burst in the room! Loud noises were heard while the door remained ajar at her path…everyone looked at her unimpressed.

"What do you want?"

"What do I want!? Isn't that my _voice_ I hear? Are you spying on me? How did you get that recording on the first place? And what the hell is going on?"

"Ah this? U shi shi, it** is** your voice, you're right!"

"Aw, Bel-chan, Franny-chan is distraught, don't make it worse. Yes honey, it's your voice but we only did it to make sure! You can't blame us for that, can you?"

She pouted and crossed her arms and looked at them meanly. Her childlike antics amused Levi, but not the boss so much; he gave her a glare. Yet she thoroughly ignored him. "But I thought I was Varia now! Why can't you trust me?"

"Don't you just feel happy you passed the test" said Levi with tears of being so moved by her resolve in his eyes as he grabbed her shoulder "and now you're _officially_ to be trusted?"

"Why wasn't I before?"

"There's difference between not killing someone and _enabling them_, right boss?"

Did he just use that word on purpose? Was that why he gave such emphasis? Then did that mean…they were listening in on her? _But how!? Oooh, this is so embarrassing. And I said all those things about the boss and his father and he'll kill me if I don't take it back!_

Xanxus didn't respond to Bel verbally, he only nodded, eyes half-closed. She gulped. "And how…um did you err, get my voice on there?"

"Bug; Squalo did it yesterday night!" informed Bel with his trademark disturbing grin.

"Tch! And we paid a fortune for it, too!"

"Aw, it was worth it mammon-chan so don't be sour!"

"You mean to tell me you were listening in on me? And Squalo did it. How did he-…?"

She suddenly had an epiphany: Squalo never, ever allowed her to hug him. Yet yesterday night not only did she manage to do it, he didn't even protest. In fact, he patted – well; hit –her back, too! So was that all a ruse, a trick to put the chip on her?

She went for the spot Squalo had touched her immediately. "Ouch!" she exclaimed as she felt something prickling her. And then: "ah! He did put it there when I hugged him! Son of a…he bugged me! Ugh! Someone please get it off of me...!"

When she saw no one volunteering, she decided to hit where it hurt: "or else I swear I'll disable it _permanently_-!"

Mammon jumped up and went to her. "Duck," he ordered "and get your hair out of the way."

She obliged and then the baby started doing something funny to her shoulder blade; it hurt and prickled and felt like he was digging into her skin, but she did not complain. Something told her even Mammon would lose his good humour and let her deal with it on her own.

"U shi shi; Mammon is worried for his investment."

"Wouldn't you be?"

"Um, when you're finished why don't we leave, Mammon-chan? Bel, you follow, too 'K?"

Bel smirked his evil grin though and made it obvious he had no intention of doing what was asked of him so Lussuria came and yanked him by the collar of his blouse. "Come now Bel-chan; why don't we go and do out nails or pick our noses outside?"

"Yes, we must leave the boss alone with Francesca as he'd requested!"

To that Levi received a fireball but everyone acted as if nothing had happened.

Bel still mumbled annoyed and unmoving so Lussuria turned to Mammon for support. "Are you quite done?"

"Yes" he said as he apathetically pulled out the tiny device embedded in her shoulder blade; she yelped in pain but none cared "let us go now."

The only thing he did was: grab a glass of water from somewhere close to him and throw the chip in. she looked at him shocked. "Wha-won't it get destroyed like that?"

"No; it's waterproof. If not then I'll get a full refund."

_So it either gets cleaned so no problem or he gets a full refund. Typical win-win situation for Mammon…_she thought sweat-dropped.

Apathetically, Mammon turned to the pair of fighting assassins. "Let's go."

And with just that, they both left – Levi had gone with the fireball –; why could Mammon command so much respect from these two she would never understand. Could it do with seniority? The fact Mammon looked like a baby didn't mean he necessarily was! After all, she had recently heard of the Arcobaleno when she stumbled upon them in her research.

She'd ask about them later, maybe ask Nono in two days…tch, yeah right as if he would ever tell her anything ever again. She shook her head away from those thoughts for now and concentrated on looking pissed off enough in front of _him_.

"Levi…revealed there's something you need to speak with me about. What may that be?"

"What's with the sour tone bitch? Be more respectful!"

"I don't feel like it! You've been monitoring me and treating me like I'm under surveillance!" She made a show of huffing and crossing her arms across her chest. "So I _**am**_ sour! Why can't I show it?"

"Because; now sit your ass down."

Still angry and her arms folded, she did as he commanded. "I'm listening…but only for the next ten minutes! Then I have to go check on my experiments so be quick."

"I don't fucking care for your experiments! You'll be here for as long as I like!"

"…So my blood samples will go bad and I'll need to restart everything – two whole months of work – even though I'm on the verge of breakthrough just because you felt like it."

"Yes."

"No; you'll have to excuse me but if need be to retire to my lab, need shall prevail."

"You really do have a death wish, don't you?" he asked a little taken aback from her tenacity to get her way.

He was mildly, mildly mind you, impressed by her sudden will to protect her research: she'd never shown signs of rebellion or generally rebellious attitude not even when her aunt died – which had seemed to cause her a lot of grief –, but when it comes to her experiments, she will vehemently hold her ground?

He knew every person had just one thing they couldn't give up no matter what, that one thing that drove cowards be brave and vice versa but he hadn't taken her for such a selfish person that her turning point would be her labs!

He smirked a little to himself, despite the initial shock and anger; either due to her selfishness or the fact it was her aunt's legacy or whatever, he believed he just found the leverage he needed. Should she ever disagree with anything because of reasons, threatening her with this seemed ideal.

"Why didn't you just tell him the truth? He would have protected you."

"I didn't want to. Word of my acid would go around but I want it to remain a secret till someone figures it out; Mammon will sure appreciate it when we'll be the only ones to have it in our possession and everyone else will pay a fortune for it."

"And here I thought you did it because…how did you say that again? Oh yeah, all I need is _my father's acceptance and love_, right?"

She widened her eyes alerted and started looking all around her for some sort of exit; she could never tell when he was being serious, deathly serious, and when he was exercising his right to a bad joke. And he did have a weird and sometimes twisted sense of humour. She looked everywhere around her again in hopes of her simply evaporating out of shame.

But that wasn't so successful. "Well?" he pressed and she could almost feel the pressure on her skin.

"That is…unrelated to me. I said what I thought concerning you and your father in an attempt to make him leave me alone. My own reasons have nothing to do with you and your father." Her voice was somehow mechanical, like a robot's; the words were coming out rigidly and her posture was stiff. She hoped to God nothing would go wrong and deep inside her she started praying to him. "I only want what's best for me…and my health."

Suddenly she looked weak and unresolved. "Please don't hit me…"

He regarded her with caution; should he kick up a storm for the words she said to his supposedly father? What would that mean for him? Does he really feel like that and him punishing her for saying it will only confirm it or does he not care at all for the excuses she made and simply feels content she didn't blab? Will he look mentally weak to her or strong…? She already knows just how strong he is, when it comes to his body so he should work on looking mentally capable.

But wait just a second; why should he care what she thinks of him? She's just another pawn that did what it was required from her! He shook his head at his own idiocy; he was so caring of his subordinates sometimes, that he wronged himself. Foolish him. Strangely though, the way she said that brought about a weird flashback; he couldn't remember much from his days in the ice but – sadly – her voice always haunted him. And now all he could remember was she, some years ago, talking to him as if she was crying:

"_Please don't let them take me away again; don't let them put me in another golden prison. I'm tired of singing for them! Please…give me the strength I need to face them."_

That was the first time anyone ever actually _prayed_ to him. Now he wasn't so conceited to believe he was a God, but her words, the tears translated in her speech, the shaking of her voice...t all felt like she was praying to a higher power. And she was clinging on to the bars that held his ice away from human heat and she must have been looking at him so it gave him the impression she was praying to him, too.

He'd felt very uncomfortable, remembering something like that; he'd also felt uncomfortable then, when she first told him, but he'd always assumed it was the ice. But now he knew better. He didn't feel smug or powerful, as he'd thought he would, but he felt weird. Unnatural. He felt he was given responsibilities and power he didn't need over someone. There was a big difference between being able to kill or help someone and someone pleading you to give them strength.

As if strength was something one could give! He felt both useless and omnipotent at the same time. He felt scared.

"Go back to your lab; we'll deliver you to Nono on Friday for your regular check up. Till then don't show me your face again."

She was completely astounded by his reply. She was expecting many different reactions from the looks on his face but…not that. Did she do something? "But your medicine…?"

"… I _can_ take them on my own if you leave instructions."

"…too true. Um, then," she started fidgeting "I will give each one a number and label it; I'll give them to someone and they'll deliver them to you. How about it?"

He simply nodded; she gave a curt bow with her head as a reply to his "OK" and then immediately left. If he didn't even use words to convey his intentions he was either sleepy or thoughtful, she had figured out over time, which meant in either case she should excuse herself.

But she left thoughtful too; why did he react so strangely? This was the first time he did nothing, nothing at all to her for anything. She exhaled troubled. Maybe there was something wrong with his food? She couldn't know…so she decided to leave it alone for now.

.

.

Two days later, she was ready to be escorted to Nono's mansion—not the one she was blindfolded when lead there. The other, that she'd been on too many occasions. True to her word, she hadn't approached Xanxus all this time. She even went out on a limb to not leave her side of the "tower" and eat alone in her room. The little times she had to communicate with others, she'd call out for Squalo or literally call him on his cell phone. When he wasn't in the house, she'd resort to Lussuria.

The upside was she didn't have to leave her experiments alone for any extended period of time, which was very fortunate timing, seeing she was on the verge of a breakthrough! Of course, if her aunt's experience had been any indication, "verge" meant a day, an hour, or a month away from discovery!

Still, she was so close she could almost taste it! The trials, the work...all of it was about to finally blossom!

"Yo, Francesca! Are you ready to go?"

Squalo peeked his head inside her room; she gave a general nod and stood up, but still looked into her microscope. She hastily put some samples in her purse, all wrapped in a way no one could discern what they were, and then looked at him. "You'll be driving me there?"

She was wondered; this entire time she kept away from boss, it was Squalo who delivered the medicine and made sure he had taken all his serums. He was the one giving him each one in the correct order, just as she'd shown him and he was the one taking care of his tantrums, too. Would he cope without him?

As if reading her mind, Squalo scoffed and hit her on the head. "I already showed him how to take the medicine, without labels! He'll manage! Do you think he's an idiot? You know, we knew how to swallow pills and stuff even before you came along!"

He was snippy but she couldn't blame him; he had a point. She pouted and when he saw her getting her coat he left; she followed after him immediately. On the way out, she ran into Levi…and for the first time in his life he didn't apologise to her! She raised an eyebrow.

Wow. If Levi was being sour she must have done something serious to the boss, or at least he's been generally withdrawn, too. "Watch your step," he said almost maliciously and she raised both her eyebrows now.

But it made sense somehow: if she went to Xanxus room and he didn't leave it again and then she got holed up in hers, it's easy to assume it's her fault. She huffed. But it wasn't! She didn't even know what she might have done wrong, he said nothing!

She crossed her arms and pouted again. And she stayed like that for the entire trip to Nono. Squalo wasn't very talkative that morning – he must have said four words to her in total since he came to fetch her – and she wasn't in the mood to accommodate their craziness. She only hoped nothing else would go wrong…

When they arrived, her stomach clenched. She was so preoccupied with finding out why the hell Xanxus reacted like that she'd forgotten what had happened with Nono! She hesitated to open her door, taken aback by sheer fear. How will he treat her? Will he corner her more? Will he make use of the fact she's alone during the briefing and threaten her into anything?

She shook her head. What was she saying? He was Nono, not his son! Everything would be fine…

"Ah, Francesca, you came! Come _this_ way…"

The surprised tone of the old man who addressed her, made her skin crawl! It also alerted Squalo! Thankfully, the transmitter was planted again on her Squalo remembered and at least Xanxus would know what would go down. He'd always wanted to know about her experiments, but this new trick was recent; it was Mammon's idea, too! The only drawback he could think of was it being found. Which it wouldn't be… Squalo planted it on her underwear.

That was a very shameful memory for him and every time he recalled he'd feel worse! Why wouldn't they send Bel or Lussuria to do it – who both have no qualms about seeing her naked or indecent – was beyond him! But they'd send _him_: yesterday night, when she went to take a bath, he snuck into her room and found a clean pair of undergarments. Then, he proceeded to put the microchip in there and leave them on the bed. That would help with her making the right selection.

If not – and he had to check too, poor soul – he'd have to somehow make all other pairs unusable. Thankfully, she decided on the pair he chose! But he still had to make sure. So what did he do? Seeing she was wearing a dress, he simply went to her and threw it in the air.

To defend himself from her wrath afterwards, he caught both her hands and then ran as fast as his legs could carry him. Francesca had started using deadly weapons as of late, so it wouldn't be smart to be in her range once her wits were gathered. Though the girl had written the event off, because she'd thought it was probably a stupid bet with Mammon or something similar, he would never forget the new lows he sank into, for one lousy transmitter.

While he was lost in his own thoughts though, he heard a door shutting and someone's footsteps retreating hastily! Sobs accompanied them and he was forced into the conclusion Francesca was the culprit. But just a moment; she wasn't to be out for another half hour! What in earth-?

"VOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOI! Scum, where do you think you're going without me? Are you trying to get yourself killed?"

He caught up with her in no time and saw she was indeed crying! He took one step back as if her emotions burned him! "What the hell? Are we good to go?"

She nodded furiously and slammed the door of the car she reached behind her; Squalo remained there, looking at her almost scared. His eyes were travelling between her, and the mansion, her and the mansion. Should he really go or would he face consequences? Nono's reassurance one minute later though cleared everything up; he went to the driver's seat and sped off...

"Aren't you gonna ask me what happened?"

"No."

"Wh-aren't you at the very least a bit curious?"

"I am; but boss will tell me."

"How? Nono won't actually _call_ him-!"

"No, but you'll report to him dumbass! And since I have no intention to talk to you, it'll be better," he lied – technically, he didn't _really_ lie – and shrugged.

Her chest expanded with pure fury, but she said nothing; instead, she looked outside her window, her hands always crossed and her cheeks all puffed up. Now even Squalo was against her. How lovely.

When they reached the Varia headquarters, she was fuming still; she ran into Levi out of pure carelessness. He pretty much glowered, yet not only did she not feel bad that even _he_ wasn't speaking to her, she actually turned around, kicked him on the shin and then walked off furious and talking to herself.

Levi stood there frozen. "What has happened over there?"

"I have no" he dragged the word "idea; I'm waiting for her to report to the boss first and then I'll find everything out from him."

"You are indeed smart Commander."

"I knew that already! I didn't expect you to tell me scum!"

As Squalo stormed away, Levi stayed there looking lost. "…Everyone is so upset today." he monologued and then went about his own business.

At the other side of the mansion, Francesca was just granted entrance into her boss's room; it was darker than she remembered but, surprisingly, it didn't smell bad or even at all! That meant he either bothered to open windows, which she doubted, or he actually spent his days out of the room.

Both were equally unimaginable.

"Report."

He was dry and to the point; she didn't know if she should thank him or feel offended! "As per usual, today I was transported to your father's in order to report to him about the progress of my research.  
>When I mentioned I was very close to a breakthrough, he thought it wise to tell me he would allow me on the premises less frequently and if I manage to succeed in what I do, the visits would stop altogether…<em>and he would be taking me research<em>! **Ugh**!"

She was fuming; of course she was fuming! She was pushed over the edge with that last jab Nono made at her! How could it be—how was it possible he'd stoop so low as to threaten her with her research, _her baby_, if she didn't speak!

She'd once again said she knew nothing about his son's death or Xanxus', his other's son, involvement and he threatens her so…obviously! And that blasted baby or midget or whatnot with the suit and the hat was the source of all her troubles! It was the first time in her life she felt like hitting a child…or anything below twenty centimetres tall.

She was pacing up and down, her hands folded. She joined the Varia formally and her life went to shit! She was pouting and looking like an overgrown child but she didn't care! If there was one person who couldn't call her immature then that was the man in front of her.

"You mean the same you won't tell me what's about? Why would he take it?"

She stopped dead in her tracks and glared at him, as if she didn't believe he actually made that question! "Oh yeah, that's right! Play dumb; what do you have to lose?  
>It's not <em>your<em> life's work that's been taken away from you; it's not all _you've_ ever had in life taken away from you! And for what? Because your boss couldn't work things out with his father!" She screamed again and stared. "Because you won't talk to your father and prefer to kill off family members, now _I'm_ in the middle, taking on all the heat!"

"You could have talked." He said it simply, boredom and tiredness in his eyes.

"Then I'd have to find a hole to hide!" she spat.

Only then did he smirk. "I never said there wouldn't be consequences…"

"Oh is that how it is? Now you're indirectly telling me that there are consequences for our every action—"

"No; I'm only telling you there is a lot worse than losing your research."

"No, there isn't! My research is my life! If I lose it, I have no reason to live!"

"Then go tell him the truth; I'll kill you but at least you'll die happy."

She just stood there, watching him with her mouth hanging open. "…I'm making all sorts of sacrifices for you and that's all you have to say? I preferred to risk _my life's work_, my aunt and _her_ life's work to save you and all you can suggest is that!? Instead of-…"

Her righteous anger was so large, yet it had no point anymore. She felt empty. She was risking everything for this selfish bastard. But why did she even think he'd do her the favour and act like a human being for once? She felt mentally exhausted and defeated. He was too much for her to handle.

"I am sorry; I was under the impression we operated as a unit thus we helped each other out. Apparently, the fact we are a monarchy eluded me. Pardon the intrusion, _master_."

As sourly she said that, so fast did she disappear.

Oh how she hated that man! She wanted to be able to punch his face in and get out of it alive! She knew that wasn't an option, so instead, she went to Levi who was wandering about aimlessly – she had this suspicion Levi did this to make sure no "spies" were on the corridors – and promptly kicked him again! On the same place, for the soul reason of enhancing his pain, which was what she was going for.

She felt like crying, but she didn't give in. She walked to her room with her head held high, in hopes she'd run into Lussuria and he'd console her…when she saw he wasn't in the house, she decided to go to the kitchen. She hadn't realised it, but she was famished! Her stomach was rumbling and grief of any kind always brought up an appetite. But first she'd go back to her room to find her new book! She knew she'd eat alone anyway, might as well catch on her latest find…and if she wasted almost an hour going through corridors then she was definitely bored.

Before she enters her room though, she felt a little strange; there was something different about it, the air was…thicker? She opened the door cautiously; she never was paranoid but living with the Varia made her watch her back _in the freaking shower_—this seemed fairly normal in comparison.

She opened the door a little and first reached for the light's switch and then did she go in, opening the door fully…and her breath caught! Had she been able to scream otherwise, she'd have done it! The sight was too much for her to bear.

"Bitch." The voice of the boss came rough and annoyed. "There is not a single paper pertinent to your research in here. What are they going to take?"

"…I have a lab for that you know."

She slapped her forehead, seeing the light of interest in his eyes. But of course; he was looking for answers. She should have known. The sight of Xanxus sitting casually on her armchair and all sorts of documents spread around and over the whole room should have been enough.

He simply stood up and walked away…she followed right after him!

"Look, I have a proposition for you" she said hastily, hating the fact she had been manipulated like this "leave my lab alone for now, promise to protect my research and the moment I have a breakthrough, I'll tell you all about it!"

He stood to listen. "Why should I bargain for something I can get for free?"

"Because all you'll find in my lab is notes of gibberish only I understand and scientific terms that either my aunt coined up or you have no idea what they mean. And then you have a bunch of results and tests saying important but incomprehensive things.  
><em>But I<em>," she said wheeling around to face him "**am** the missing link. If you can guarantee me you shall save my research from the demanding clutches of your father, then I shall explain all in detail when the time comes."

He considered; she was smiling triumphantly. "…No."

She widened her eyes. "Why not?"

"Because."

She froze momentarily, but then her gears went into overdrive: "Look here mister, you scratch my back I scratch yours! If you protect my research, I protect your ass! Give and take, the balance of the world! Besides, come on, practically I'm the only person _in the world_ who can actually read the shit on the paper!"

His face took a weird shine as he smirked and moved towards her; she gulped. She started backing up rigidly. "You've become a little _too_ audacious…haven't you?"

His breath brushed her ears; she felt her back hitting the wall—she was cornered: a true predator threatened her. Trapped between solid rock and him, she could turn nowhere for help. The hands that originally hang to his sides made their way up to her.

She had no idea if the sexual connotations existed or she made them up, but she felt so much heat rise inside her. "I-…I have not…" His palm rested spread against the wall while the other hand slithered to her neck, after tracing her figure. It started slowly going up and down, as if testing its size or sense of touch in some weird way.

He pretended he didn't hear anything she said and kept gazing at her solemnly.

"I don't know if I like it or it pisses me off." The feeling of someone carelessly caressing her neck turned into a sensation of someone struggling with the thought if he should crush it or not. "I'll protect your research…_and you'll _protect my name."

His lips came close to the hand squeezing her neck and she couldn't help but feel both scared yet aroused. Her damn hormones and her blessed knowledge of the human body kept her from thinking she was going crazy. Still, she felt like she was waiting for something from him. "Deal?"

She wanted to swallow but his hand stopped her from doing that. "_Deal_…" she said chokingly and her voice barely came out. He pushed her forward, only hurting her more, and she had the oddest image in her head the way he moved with her. "I didn't hear you."

She closed her eyes in pain as she was forced to expand her neck but he was still holding it, with a bruising grip. "Deal," was her breathless answer and she braced herself for something…!

But it never came.

"Heh" he snorted and let her go; she fell to the ground. The tension evaporated faster than pure alcohol "at least now you ask me for something I can give you…_over demanding broad_."

He then lifted her up by the back of her shirt – she felt like a little lion cub in that moment –, shoved her towards the other direction of her lab and walked first. "I'm hungry. I want food."

"Me Tarzan, you Jane" she heard instead, looking at him distastefully.

But his words troubled her, if she could disregard the dominating sensation of feeling seduced. She'd never asked him in all the time she's been working for him for anything! She was sure of that, not even a vacation. What did he mean? And why did it upset him so much? Maybe it was something she couldn't remember due to erased traumatic experience, that would make sense, and she's had a lot of those these past months.

She shrugged and went after him at her original destination, only without the book. Of course, now she had _him_. Puckering her lips, she stared at the back of his head annoyed. Much company his munching would make!

.

"VOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOI! I'm hungry! Francesca, make me something to ea-…t. Oh. What the hell?"

Francesca was already _in_ the kitchen Squalo stormed in, cooking, covered in flour. Her hair was a regular mess of knots and her clothes had changed colour, from black to white. Her nose had a pinch of chocolate right on the tip. The whole bench and the sink were covered inch for inch with pots, saucepans, plates, and mixers either dirty or half empty and weird types of cutlery he'd never seen again.

"Is anyone dying of hunger?"

"…" She glared. "The one who usually does: the boss."

"And he's made you cook a chocolate cake?"

"Oh, no, no I wish! He's making me cook "opera", a French delicacy I didn't even know about! It's what _the royalty_ eats, he said, and who else but him _deserves it_, he said!"

"And you don't agree with that statement?"

"Oh good God shut up!" she snapped panicked looking over her shoulder as if the walls had ears. "I don't need to give him more reason to abuse me today!"

"Ha ha, he must be in a foul mood. He's been in one for the past two days, ever since you…wait, what did you do to him? He was fine till you left!"

"Wh-that's a lie! He went all-weird on his own that time! I did nothing!"

"You must have said something. You _always_ say something."

"I am no-…" only then did she realise what he'd said and she looked at him meanly, before she goes back to her work. "I am not responsible for this. His crazy head may be, but I'm not."

"Keep telling yourself that." he said in a singsong voice, oddly cheery.

There was something very weird about that, but she didn't mind seeing _some_one happy. And then a loud voice came to deaf her:

"**Where is my food, scum!?"**

"**It's almost done, "boss"!" **she shouted back and shook her head.

She concentrated on making the opera faster; if she didn't, with Squalo gone, she would only think of how he was expecting her to come with the sweet in her hands. Just as he was expecting her in her room some hours ago and then he all but came onto her.

That's how she saw it anyway! After all, it was the first time in his life he _touched_ her on his own accord, even if the reason was an actual threat. Still, it didn't seem too much of an emergency nor did he seem to _really_ want to harm her. Did he want to scare her? He probably just wanted to manipulate her even more. But she'd felt so flustered and weak when he approached her! And she felt his body heat rise, too! He must have felt something...tingling inside him, right...?

And then she had a sudden epiphany: he didn't want the cake for himself, Silvana would be coming over!

Suddenly she froze on the spot and looked forward with a blank expression on her face. Oh that slimy son of a bitch! The bastard! So he wanted the opera for her, huh? The stupid prick! And she didn't even—she actually thought-...! She would **cut** him for this! Her resolve made, she ran into the living room - where he was resting - with a kitchen knife in her hands, brandished dangerously.

"VOOOOOOOI! Watch it!"

She paid little to zero attention to him and went straight for the boss. "You have me in the kitchen these past two hours cooking for your goddamn _girlfriend_? She wanted a special cake so you made me make one!?"

"...so what?"

He wasn't even denying the fact she was his girlfriend! "What? _What_!? You're actually _asking_ me that!? I am not a bloody maid—and most certainly not your little girlfriend's, too!"

"Aren't you girls, friends?" Squalo asked from his seat on the sofa.

She glared so intensely, he felt the need to hide behind something. He spoke no more. "You are lucky it's almost ready and I have a curiosity to how it'll turn out, or else _she_ would never eat one from **my** hands! Ugh! To think you make me cook this for the likes of her, as if I'm obliged to wait on her as I wait on you...!

And you don't even deny the fact you're together!"

_Where did that come from_, both men wondered but didn't speak. "I mean, didn't you say that you had no such thing as a girlfriend? What do you think you're doing, treating her like that, and giving her false hopes only to crush her dreams just because you feel like it?"

She had no idea if she were talking about Silvana or herself anymore. "Isn't it enough you torture her everyday with your horrible behaviour? Just leave her alone and don't send her mixed signals! Mixed signals are annoying and so confusing!  
>...Bottom mind, I'm never cooking you an opera, ever again!"<p>

Just before she stormed out of the room, she threw the knife on the wall behind him! It pierced it enough to stay. Both Squalo and Xanxus just sat there, wondering what the hell had just happened to their scientist-doctor-cook-maid to go over the edge with no apparent reason.

"I think she's a little attached to you."

"..._I_ think she starts blending in."

"No, she's attached; so don't feed her addiction, say something!"

"…no."

Squalo rolled his eyes exasperated but said nothing, taking into account that last time he opposed he received something on the head. Even if he knew this would somehow bite Xanxus in the ass…

* * *

><p><strong>AN**: Yeap I'm done! Tell me what you thought of it! Reviews are love!


	15. One's place

**A/N**: New chapter! Not too soon, not too early I hope! Picking up where we left off, exactly where we left off!

Also, I'd like to thank all fo you lovely people who review, fave and alert this story! You give me so much courage to go on with this! And of course thank you **Orihara Izaya**, my lovely beta reader!

I do not own KHR yadda yadda yadda! Enjoy~!

* * *

><p>Francesca retired to her kitchen immediately; she finished the sweet, went to her lab, finished her daily routine and then she went to her room feeling so stupid and so used. She wanted to bang her head against a wall for acting like such a child, especially in front of <em>two<em> of them—now there were witnesses.

What in earth possessed her to act like that anyway? So what if Silvana was his girlfriend and she wanted to eat the damn cake? She's her first friend so she should make it! It wasn't such a big deal...! But now, she had to completely spazz out about her and Xanxus being together _even if she was the one who pushed it to happen_! She is so unreasonable and spoiled and she would just die of shame if either of them ever mentioned it again!

She hid her face in her hands, wanting the earth to swallow her, but deep down she was proud about something: she flung a knife at the boss and he didn't chase her out with fire. What a day.

On that note, she totally didn't fall for Xanxus. It would be crazy, unhealthy and bad judgement. And none of those traits suited her; she was attracted to him because she was attracted to power and, frankly, he was attractive, too. That was all.

...Yeah right. She was crazy and unreasonable and the only judgement call she ever made was joining the Varia. Whom was she kidding? Not only did she have close to none of those traits up there, she also had started falling for him! Then there was only one thought left on her mind: she had _had_ to make it stop. She set her jaw decided to stop this unhealthy relationship before it even formed.

Tch, as if he would ever have a relationship with her—she was not "good enough" and that was what drove her…oh no. What had she just promised herself? No more thinking like that!

.

Next morning, a sleepy Squalo who walked in her room as if it was his own interrupted her sleep. He proceeded to push her as far away from the centre of her bed as he could and then actually lay on it. When she, not realising what had just happened, went close to him profoundly happy for the new source of heat, she was promptly kicked out of the bed.

"Ouch! What, what is it?" she asked looking around lost. When she managed to focus, she saw the deceptive form of a person on the bed. She craned her neck to see who it was. "Who-…Squalo? _Why _are you here? And why did you kick me out of my own bed?"

"Shut up scum; I can't sleep! Silvana's shouts have been keeping me up all night."

She looked at him apathetically. He really had to say that, hadn't he? She opted for another source of frustration though and she merely asked the time. "It's four in the morning. Shut up and let me sleep."

"If this is four in the morning then why are you here!?"

"They _just_ stopped, which means they'll start again in a couple of hours but I want to sleep. So I waited till now and then moved. Now shoo."

Oh the details she got to know of her boss's sex life! Did she really need to know all of these? No! She bet all she owned Squalo did it on purpose either to torture or test her. So she kept quiet and tried not to look too pissed off. She opted to merely tell: "This is _my_ bed you know…"

"Shut up and leave me alone! Aren't you on the verge of a breakthrough or whatever? Go be useful and have the breakthrough! Oh, and I want an omelette for breakfast. Bring it to me around ten…"

She glared at him for so long and so hatefully, she was sure he'd feel his skull burn soon enough. But he still didn't get up. "Fuck you." She snapped as she rose from the floor and made her way to the closet.

She grabbed one of her "womanly" Varia uniforms and headed to Squalo's room to get dressed – there's no way she'd do that with him in the room – but banged the door on her way out, to make sure she gave him one last jab before she did as he wanted. She sighed again and then went to her lab, to work on that research…

Next day, it wasn't prior to three when she emerged from her laboratory. She didn't even leave to make breakfast for the rest. Instead, when Lussuria came into her lab, she requested he made her some and if he could give Squalo and boss's theirs instead of her. Surprisingly, he said yes and pranced away.

She hadn't made much of it at the time, she simply went back to her work, but some hours later, she realised she should have! For an apparently unknown reason to her, everyone was looking at her as if she'd done something wrong. Terribly wrong. Appallingly and hideously wrong. Something so wrong that betraying Xanxus to Nono wouldn't compare.

Just what in earth had she done unbeknown to her own self!?

"How could you do that, Francesca?" Levi said hurt beyond all imagination. "I trusted you. _We_ trusted you." he continued and turned his cheek away. "I cannot do that anymore." he finished and marched off…to his seat.

They were at the dining room and they were all sitting at the table already, except for her. So when she made an entrance – the pricks didn't even wait for her to start – most of them reacted uncharacteristically. Even the boss looked somewhat annoyed. That was when, in her book, shit hit the fan. Something was going terribly wrong.

Then again, Squalo looked as taken aback as she was, though no one glared at _him_.

"What did I do…?" she asked cautiously as she took a seat next to the only man who seemed to be sharing her feelings.

"Oh so now you don't know? You don't even consider it anything at all? Was it all just a game to you, playing with people's feelings…?" Levi continued tear-eyed and wiped at his eyes. "You monster. And you go seat next to him..."

"I bet she kicks puppies too!"

"Oh yes, now I believe it…"

"Wh-Bel! Stop saying stuff like that—Levi believes it! Just what the hell is going on?"

"Yeah, what's up?" Squalo quipped, eating idly. "Why is Levi acting like she raped him?"

She felt foams coming out of her mouth; her raping Levi? Why all the mental images, why is he so cruel?

But when Squalo spoke, there was silence. It was a weird silence and certainly uncomfortable. "What? Any of you scum will explain?"

"You mean you don't care…?"

"V-VOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOI! What should I care about, what do you mean? Explain yourselves now scum!"

They looked at each other; Francesca and Squalo were freaked out. "Well, here's the deal!"

"No, Lussuria, don't-!"

"Oh they'll find out we found out anyway…so, you see, yesterday I woke up late at night! I was so thirsty because my neck felt dry so I decided to go to the kitchen and have a little drink! But when I passed in front of Squalo's bedroom, what did I see…?"

"What did you see?" both asked simultaneously.

"I saw Squalo sneaking out and into your room!"

Silence prevailed once more and now the two were watching Lussuria with their mouths hanging open. "Oh don't give me that look just because you were found dears~! I saw you running to her room! And when I came back in the morning to confirm, you were still there, sleeping in her bed while she was in her lab doing research!

And then she told me to go make breakfast for everyone because she was tired…now why would she be tired I wonder, ne. But how mean! Mothers and daughters talk about stuff like this! Why didn't you tell me about your secret affair with Squalo Franny-chan? I wouldn't tell!"

"Wh-you just did! Ugh, no, I mean there is nothing to tell yet you told anyway!"

"VOOOOOI! Don't say stupid unnecessary things! We don't have an affair and that's that! We don't have an affair! No way!"

"Then why were you going into her room so late at night?" Lussuria asked put out. He was actually sorry that his gossip wasn't true!

"I wanted to sleep, so I went there."

"Yeah, and kicked me out of my room, too! So I went to the lab and I was there from four in the morning, _which was why I was tired_! Geez the lot of you! One kicks me out of my bed, the others makes up rumours about me…who's left to cut me...? No wait, I didn't-!"

But too late; Bel had already sent his knives towards her and she'd only had time to dodge. Levi was too doubtful to protect her so the duty fell to Squalo. He grabbed her by the hair, pulled her back and they passed her just in time.

"Wh-wh-wh...?" she was trying to relax, her hand over her heart. But then it hit her. "Wait. If you thought Squalo came to my room why was I the one who was on trial!?"

"...after the incident with the kitchen knife yesterday, we figured you were the one who lured him out or arranged the meeting..."

"Um, well, it was no real incident" she said half-laughing trying to brush it off with waving her hand around "I just had a little fit of anger. That's all and that's that. Nothing else. Nothing at all..." she was saying as she was playing with a piece of her food with her fork. She finally snatched it.

"Ooooh..." Lussuria said. "_We_ thought you were trying to make the boss notice you. You know, with the crush you have on him and all. Oh Francesca that is not a very lady-like behaviour..." he disapproved of her chocking on her food and then trying to spit it out. "At least use a towel or a handkerchief."

"I," she started coughing "I do **not**" if her throat didn't make her feel like her lungs were about to be incinerated then she'd certainly feel the warmth of her cheeks "have a crush on, on, on, on...him." she finished pointing with her finger at Xanxus as she refused to even look his way. "You are crazy to think that."

She crossed her arms and looked away from all. "But I still don't get it. Even if I had decided to have an affair with Squalo, what would be the problem?"

"_I_ wouldn't agree!"

She looked at him annoyed. "Saying you _didn't_ mind."

"Relationships between Varia members are prohibited."

"Oh." She didn't know that! It sounded very interesting. "How so?"

"...it was established when Lussuria joined our ranks; Squalo and the boss were fed up with him flirting with them all the time."

"Ha ha!"

"Oh~? You forgot the fact you acted like a crazy person with a butcher knife because the boss would sleep with another woman already Franny-chan?"

She stopped laughing altogether. There was no talking back; she only took her plate, stood up and left for the kitchen.

"Who cooked today?"

"I did boss~!" Lussuria answered eagerly and smiled.

"What's the smile for? It's horrible!" he snapped, throwing it at his face... Lussuria just stared speechless.

"I think this is his way of saying "don't fight"." Bel confined in Mammon.

"…_yes." _Mammon surprisingly agreed. It was that much of a shock for everyone to see the boss like that, even Mammon replied casually!

.

.

In the next couple of days, there was nothing but silence in the Varia household. Francesca would rarely come out of her lab, where she made boss's serums and her own experiments and research – as well as that acid she'd need to kill off Federico – and the rest would rarely meet due to missions. Xanxus was the only one sitting comfortably on his leather, sumptuous armchair...but even he had nothing to shout about or _to_ when everyone was gone!

Sometimes he would call for the "nurse" and she'd come out, but she looked so…lifeless! As if someone had sucked all of her vitality out, leaving her a shell of her former self. And it was no fun to shout to someone who not only couldn't talk back, but also couldn't even look at him while he offended them. Life was boring in the Varia headquarters and Xanxus was the first to notice.

If this was related to what Lussuria had said, he'd be sure to expect hell when he returned, if Francesca hadn't changed her attitude by then!

On the other hand, Francesca was simply mortified of seeing him alone again! She wouldn't even look at him because she was sure she'd blush and say something incredibly stupid! And her whole experience with the knife wasn't a pleasant one, so in hopes of that never happening ever again, she avoided being with him in any kind of state for any kind of reason! She had even labelled each serum with a number so he'd know what he'd take and when, thus she'd be not needed.

But…she remembered how he looked when everyone thought she was having an affair with Squalo, and it wasn't happy, that's for sure! He even sounded…oddly annoyed by the fact. Could it be because he didn't want her to be with Squalo? As in he wanted her for himself?

Psss, right! She'd more chances with Xanxus wanting Squalo rather than her! Besides, what's wrong with her mind? She promised she wouldn't think of the boss like that and now here she is, hoping he was miffed she was implicated in such a situation! She hated her stupid romantic books for putting such ideas into her head! She swore she'd burn them all if she kept making such ridiculous thoughts.

With these sorts of feelings being overlooked or forced, the days passed calmly…

But it was only the calm before the storm. Three days later, Squalo came back in the middle of the night and he was all sorts of a mess: his hair and his clothes wet, his face beaten-up and his sword hand soaked in more liquids than one. Water, oil and blood; sea water, motor oil and that was certainly human blood.

She rushed over.

"What the bloody hell happened to you?" she asked worried, checking him all over for any wounds or blood of his own.

"Nothing, I just came back from work. Relax. None of the blood is mine…"

"But your face is so beat up! I know—come with me to the lab and I'll patch you up immediately!"

"No, I wanna lie down for now…"

His voice was steady, but she could see he was tired. His legs were shaking a little but she didn't dare to offer any assistance. She learned from boss that a person's pride cannot be toyed with when it plays such a big part of their personality.

"I'll bring you some soothing cream I made for those bruises. Wait for me here; if you must, then go to sleep, OK?"

He nodded and lay down on the big couch. "Oh, just tell me this before I go: who was the target?"

"Massimo…"

She stopped walking for a moment and then started again; Massimo was dead. That meant…it was her turn. She had to kill Federico. And if things go as they did before she should wait someone to come and grab her by the arms and lead her to Nono again tomorrow! She shivered at the thought.

She did as she promised right away though, leaving no room for her growing panic and went to take the soothing ointment she'd promised Squalo. It was one of the projects she developed all by herself with no one's help or knowledge, so she was particularly proud of this! In fact, this was the very first thing she ever cooked up on her own and she was exceedingly happy to see it so affective! She'd spent days balancing out ingredients and eliminating side effects!

And she would remember and think anything other than the fact she was now burdened with the purpose of killing another human being! Funny how when they told her they killed the first she was even happy but now she was almost sulking…

When she reached back to Squalo, he was already snoring. She shook her head, seeing him there sprawled out like that, but she couldn't help but think fondly of him. She bent down, sitting on her shins and started applying the cream wherever she saw a developing or recently developed mark on his body. It was even good for the cuts and tears here and there.

She made sure he was all right and then proceeded to feel his clothes: dump and cold. She'd have to make him change, but how…? She looked around her, hoping to spot a certain someone. When she didn't, she knew she had to go _directly_ to Lussuria's room and wake him up or at least see if he was there. She did and found him sleeping with a mask on!

"Lussuria…wake up…" he stirred but didn't wake. "Come on now Lussuria wake up." She said louder, shaking him a little. This once she saw him moving, but he didn't remove the mask! Why would he…? Oh right. Maybe he was still mad at her. But she had her own way to make it up to him! "Momma Lussuria, wake up please; we need to dress Squalo."

"OK, I'm up!" he said immediately and the mask was removed in a flash. "Where is our lovely victim?"

"He's sleeping on the sofa and his hair and clothes are all wet! We need to change him and put his hair up."

"Oooh, poor Squ-chan! Yes, let's go take care of him! Momma approves!"

And now with the enlisted help from "mom" they managed to carry him to his bed, change him out of his clothes, make sure his hair don't touch his neck all night, and left him all cosy and warm. When they were finally out of there and in front of Lussuria's room, she stood to look at him in the eye. "Thank you Lussuria! You're very sweet…! And I'm really sorry I laughed at you all those days ago. I shouldn't have. It was mean."

"Oooh, Franny-chan! You're so sweet!" he exclaimed and grabbed her by the head! Then he buried her in his chest and stroked her hair. "I'm sorry I told everyone about Squalo and you, too! And it turned out it wasn't true! I only told because I thought you were hiding it from me…! Forgive me?"

"Sure…!" her voice barely came out as he was still smothering her in his chest.

"Oh, I'm so happy! I forgive you, too! Oh! By the way" he removed her from his chest in favour of looking straight at her "are you really into the boss or was I just being mean?"

"…I was very glad we could have this talk, Lussuria! Bye bye~!"

She was gone faster than the speed of light.

"Oh my; I _was_ right…!" he said to himself with a wicked expression, but decided to say none of it to anyone. This once, he would keep this between the two of them…and then maybe she would trust him enough to tell her all sorts of things! Oh how nice would that be, to be able to share things like a true mother and daughter?

He smiled at where she used to be and went to bed.

The next day the two suited men from the previous encounter appeared on their doorstep. Francesca was right. In paralysing fear, she'd run to Lussuria and all but begged to open the door for her. He kindly indulged. While they were going, she was hiding behind him in an effort to both feel protected and ready to act if they have come for her indeed.

The biggest shock for them all though was when Francesca saw that the two men were already in their living room when she got there: Xanxus, who appeared to not have slept at all, was the one who let them in and now he was sitting comfortably in the sofa Squalo was sleeping briefly last night.

"Breakfast!" he said the moment he saw them; at the same time the two suited men stood up. "Sit down." He ordered. They did it.

And **you**" he looked over to the flamboyant man "make breakfast; Francesca, join us."

Oh, the food order wasn't for her? That was a first. But had it had to be now? She stared for a brief moments before she timidly starts making her way to the armchair next to the sofa, feeling the ground beneath her feet somehow wane. "So what do you want with her?" he asked.

He didn't allow her to make it past the spot of his couch, just grabbed her to sit her next to him. She felt her skin crawl for a tiny moment but the way this was going to play out scared her…

"Our business with Miss Francesca Tutsi is our own. In fact, it's your father's. Even we have no knowledge of his intentions. So please hand her over."

"I don't feel like it. The old man is way too demanding."

"Give her up."

"No."

"I am not a thing you know…"

They all looked at her something between furious and annoyed. "Then choose for yourself." the one on the left demanded.

"I don't wish to leave my house like I'm being kidnapped again. If the Ninth needs to see me urgently there are always phones and other means of contact he could use. I feel my personal space extremely violated otherwise."

The two men stayed there looking at her shocked. "There, she won't go with you." Xanxus said in a snobby way and smirked. He put his arm around her shoulders as if provoking them to make him unhand her.

They saw the threat and didn't take the bait. Communicating again through looks, they stood up simultaneously and went some feet away. They took out their cell phones and dialled some numbers. Both seemed to be calling different people, but they both ended their calls the same way: they nodded once, hanged up and turned to face the two of them on the couch.

"The boss said he'd send an invitation shortly." Said the one on the right and proceeded to retake his previous seat, followed by the other. "Can we have a cup of coffee while we wait?"

"I'll go make s-!"

"Lussuria will do it." he said warningly and made her sit down again.

Some minutes or so later, Lussuria reappeared with the food. Then they told him they needed some things more and he gladly went off to fetch them…not before he winked at Francesca when he spotted his boss's hand around her. She wanted to kill herself because not just Xanxus but everyone else caught it, too. And judging by their reactions they thought the same thing anyone would: they were having an affair. Oh God. And Xanxus was eating this up, pretending to be intimate with her. Damn it all!

Surprisingly, though she admitted to herself she liked him, she didn't feel too happy at the thought they were having an affair…she would go back to that later, she promised herself.

While they were having their breakfast, altogether the four of them, the bell rang again! Lussuria went to get it and saw another man in black suit, serious and unmoving. "I have a letter for a Francesca Tutsi."

"Of course! This way please~! Oh my, what a strong man you are! You look so handsome, too!"

He said nothing. "Hmm, I see you're the strong silent type! I _love_ the strong, silent type!"

They reached the place where everyone was gathered and came across a very peculiar sight: the rest of the Varia was in the adjoining hallway, peeking in while Xanxus was casually sitting back. He'd dragged a very awkward-looking and most certainly fear-stricken Francesca whose face was redder than Squalo's raw cut on his forearm.

Lussuria said nothing and went to the living room. "Everyone~! A messenger is here, with a letter addressed to our lovely young lady!"

"The letter from Nono has arrived." The left one said as both stood up.

She mimicked them this once and stood up herself. She was pretty shaken by the whole deal, but when Xanxus didn't stop her, she felt a sudden surge of confidence! She could do this! She took the envelope the other man was holding out and sat back down next to her boss, who actually put his hand around her shoulders yet again and read the letter with her.

No one dared to stop him from doing it.

_=:=:=  
><em>

_My dear Francesca,_

_I know things haven't been so well for you and I can only imagine the pain you are going through. It hasn't been too long since the loss of your aunt and yet all these events took place. I am sure you are no doubt lost and confused._

_But do not despair my child and most importantly, do not make the wrong choices. I would love to fix everything for you, but you first have to help me so that I can help you._

_You see, another tragedy has befallen us in the form of the death of yet another potential heir of my position as the head of this family. Massimo was found dead, drowned in the sea just outside of this town. This is an underhanded strike from someone who wishes either our family or me unwell._

_I beg you to come to my estate again and have another talk of what you know of this subject or even the perpetrators. You should know in advance, should you by any means feel you're implicated in it and that is the reason you do not come forward, I personally guarantee you no one will ever hold you responsible._

_In fact, I too fear for your life if you choose to reveal something you may know, thus I will make sure I send you back to, Spain, to live with your parents again. And if you don't want to live with them, then I shall provide you with a residence anywhere you so desire._

_Take my offer under consideration and choose wisely._

_Sincerely yours,_

_Timoteo._

_=:=:=  
><em>

She immediately turned towards Xanxus, just to make sure he was still there and hadn't by any "chance" killed any of the men in suits. When she saw that all was well from that aspect, she rushed to check herself and see if she was in one piece. When she was certain she wasn't somehow maimed, too only then did she start thinking on what to say.

And then she realised she had no idea what to say, because she hadn't made up her mind on what to do yet! This was an amazing chance that presented itself to her, an offer that could not be refused and once it passed, would never appear again! It was everything she ever wanted or needed for a fresh start outside the Varia – but definitely still inside the family – without her parents and with all the independence she ever wanted!

But at what a price? She would have to forever look over her shoulder in case any stray Squalo appeared and cut her down! She would have to be extra cautious in rain in case some Levi was there to fry her like bacon! And then there was the problem that she would have no idea how to look out for illusions! This might just be a big fat illusion from Mammon to gauge her reactions to begin with.

Even so, her very first instinct had been to refuse. She was well aware of the dangers, the problems and the rewards if she stuck around with them and somehow the last seemed to be more important. Being a useful member of a team, being someone others relied on no matter how they treated her and like she'd once said to Ottabio she'd rather have someone tell her a harsh truth rather than beautiful lies.

And deep inside her, she saw being next to Xanxus a perk, no matter how she wanted that to be a lie...her stupid co-dependency problem! She feared she had one when her aunt died and now that she was replaced by Xanxus as a figure of power, she was certain.

"Interesting letter," commented Xanxus, looking devilish "but she has to decline."

She'd felt her whole body awake when he spoke—guilt and worry washing over her, but she rushed to chime: "Indeed" _before_ either could snap at him "tell him I happen to find Italy lovely. Plus I enjoy my research."

"What does that have to do with anything?" the one of the two asked strict. He was about to get up, too ominous and grave, but her raised hand stopped him. She seemed in the guy's eyes far too collected and blunt to be forced into this, no matter how strong Xanxus' grip was on her shoulder or the nails that dag into the fabric. Obviously he was more some form of a support with a little threat in it instead of the opposite.

Then she proceeded to take the final bite of her breakfast and then drink some coffee. "It has everything to do with this letter. Say this to Nono and he shall understand I assure you."

"...very well, then; I guess our presence is no longer needed."

"Or wanted." He supplemented yet again, being rather talkative. She was surprised he went to such great lengths to show them something they already knew – they're unwelcome – but she figured it had to do with asserting authority. If anyone asked her, he won.

"As you wish." They said simultaneously and their voice was grave. She knew trouble would be coming from them all too shortly. But she said nothing as she watched them go – with no one escorting them out – and with them, her only real chance at freedom. It would be OK though, right? She chose the correct path...right?

"Tch! I didn't think the old man would react so soon again! Especially the same way!" Squalo said as he entered the room. He looked annoyed – but then again that was his natural look – and worried.

"Indeed! And they scared poor Franny-chan so much, didn't they?"

She coloured from his remark. "Not as much as you make it out to be..."

"You say that _now_ because the boss is still here! When the bell rang though, you were pushing me in front of the door!"

"I-..."

_Oh there is no point anymore..._ "You know what, you're right!" she admitted, throwing her hands in the air. "I think him supporting me is encouraging. I mean, call me crazy but I think that's what the essence of supporting is supposed to do and it does it for me. So, thank you" she turned to Xanxus "for the great help; thank _you_ guys" she turned to the rest, all very theatrical "for being so sweet about this...especially you Lussuria. And now if you'll excuse me, I have an acid to finish!"

She completed her speech and she made an exit. She strutted to the door, flipping her hair back a final time before she was out of their sight and walked away with an uncharacteristic sway in her hips.

"See? I told you: attached!" Squalo exclaimed out of nowhere, pointing with both hands to where Francesca was a moment ago.

"Still saying blending in." Xanxus replied shrugging.

"Who's attached?" Bel asked, entering the scene in an unorthodox manner: he was using a small torch to do something to a big knife.

"_Francesca_ is attached!" Squalo exclaimed. "Ah! Ouch, damn it boss!"

"We all know she's attached Squ-chan; we can see her behave! Why is there a need to point it out?"

"Heh! See? Even Lussuria agr-VOOOOOOOOI! Shitty boss, why do you only hit me?" he snapped, seeing for a second time something being hurled at him.

"..." Xanxus said nothing in return, simply gave the wrong eye to everyone present.

They understood. They left him alone with his thoughts before long.

And his thoughts were winding, going round and round on the same matter. Both context and way of thinking went in perfect full circles. He hated it when that happened! As if he had a one-track mind and he couldn't think anything other than that which he originally thought! Well, maybe that was true, or else he wouldn't be nearly as obsessive as he was...he shook his head. He digressed! What he was actually thinking was not his close-minded stubbornness but the fact he'd just defended her and did as she'd asked.

Why was it that her voice banged on his thoughts so much that just to shut it up he actually did what she wanted? Her being defenceless reminded him of his days in the ice, he realised at some dark part of his mind – where he'd proceed to store the knowledge as soon as he was finished, too -. The pit of his stomach felt wobbly.

And his mind somehow transported him back at that closed, cold room in that villa's basement. He opened his eyes to make the image and most importantly the feeling of being cold away but strangely all he saw was...darkness. Taken aback, he tried to escape, but he was still sitting in his chair! So the chair was pushed back but then it fell back in its place, he didn't fall. It didn't put any distance between him and the absolute nothing.

Slowly, as if diving into his memories, he discerned a little light and a machine next to it. It was the huge mechanical "claws" and their base, where he and his ice were put for safe keeping. As if someone had strapped him on that chair and made him watch and then pushed play, he could see all of the things he remembered from eight, six, two years ago: darkness, a little light, some weird threatening-looking machine and...a girl in the midst of all. A small, in the beginning, but bigger later girl who slowly became more woman-like; she grew up.

She was constantly there but she was constantly changing. Her hair were short at first, then they became longer and longer. Her eyes grew smaller or well, her face became that of an adult's. Her height even changed! Not that much, but it still did...yet he remained the same—exactly the same. Nothing about him was different than two days or years ago! He was stolen out of it!

Thus every time he laid eyes on her, the same unreasonable contempt and hate swelled up inside him! He was jealous of her, of her ever-changing, ever-moving self. She never stood still and how could she anyway? The room was so cold she couldn't help but rub her hands together, blow on them, rub her forearms to produce heat...anything that kept her warm. Yet he was cold.

And how he hated the cold! He despised it, more than anything! He couldn't remember clearly, but he knew when he was but a very small child the cold would torture him! He desperately wanted to shield himself from it, but he couldn't! Nowhere was warm, not even his mother's arms...that was when he first developed his flame. The very first time, he thought he was delusional or simply delirious seeing he was dying because of the cold but when his mother came over, looking dumbfounded, he knew it was real!

And after that time, he never had to face the dreaded horrible cold ever again! Even if he didn't remember his mother, even if he barely recalled her startled expression, he would always remember the wonderful sensation of being warm whenever he wanted, wherever he wanted.

…And after so many years, _that_ was taken away from him and he was reduced to being an iced lab rat for some scientist and her niece! And that niece would come down there, dressed to the teeth, ever-changing, clinging on to her heat and her present. No matter how unpleasant it might had been, she got to live it! He on the other hand, he was...trapped and frozen and even for his standards, he was lonely! He hated her for what she was, for what she symbolised!

Yet at the same time, she was his only link to the outside world. Her words and her voice reminded him he was still alive: he still had a chance to escape and go back to his previous life. She was...hope. She was both the embodiment of all he couldn't do, of his bitterness yet at the same time she stood as the sole symbol of hope. He loathed her as much as he needed her. She was no one special, he knew but she was the only one there, too. The only one who took their time to make sure he was not only alive but also entertained. She kept him company.

He was as confused about her then, as he is now. And just like that, just by blinking, he was brought back to reality. Yet, he felt unworldly cold. He might as well have been in that basement for all he knew! His hands almost shook and his breathing came ragged. He half-expected to see white breath coming out of his mouth...

He shook his head disappointed in himself and pinched the bridge of his nose. He really needed to get out of this place, no matter how many suspicions he might draw to himself. Being cooped up like this messed with his mind, apparently! He needed to get away from this house and that woman who kept reminding him of what he'd been through, yet at the same time she was the one who made him get better!

He stood up annoyed at himself and at his latest "pet". He would go to her and he'd make sure his point reached her! What that point was he still didn't know, but he'd be sure to get it across! He left in a haste and charged towards her room! He literally zoomed passed a confused Levi and made a left turn, to get to the side of the house she was. He passed some servants, too—he hadn't seen any of them for a long while -, and took another left one at the end. His nerves were making him jerky and the veins on his forehead showed.

He reached her room and opened the door wide...! But she wasn't there.

_Of course, the lab_, that's where she was. He turned heel, changing his destination. Seeing the door of that makeshift laboratory of hers appearing in the hallway – it was only ten metres further anyway – he picked up his pace and grabbed the doorknob. Before he could twist it in his hand though, he felt it turning by itself and noticed the door opening!

He took a step back and glared at probably her who was coming outside. It was indeed her but the expression on her face when she saw him turned from pleased to wondered and then excited! And that was...not the reaction he was aiming for.

"I don't know why you're here but no matter it's even better that you are! Come, come, come, come!"

They just stood there, looking at each other. "Inside!" she said in the end as if that was the problem. "Well come inside then!" she urged again but didn't leave it up to him: she took his hand, still looking thrilled – and sounding hyperactive – and dragged him inside.

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><p><strong>AN**: Small, too small a cliffhanger! Hope you liked it! If you did please leave a review! By the way, if you think something is off or anything, please tell me what it is! I always enjoy feedback,either negative or positive!


	16. Criminal Consultant Isabelle

**A/N**: Soooo...Happy holidays! I hope you've had a wonderful Christmas or anything that you celebrate no matter religion and ethnicity! May you have a wonderful time! Thank you for sticking around here and this is another update. I know, I'm late. Sorry. So here's the next chapter, hope you enjoy the same. Also, thanks to my wonderful beta reader Orihara Izaya and those who fave and alert and of course the lovely people who review! Thank you~!

* * *

><p>"I don't know why you're here but no matter it's even better that you are! Come, come, come, come!"<p>

They just stood there, looking at each other. "Inside!" she said in the end as if that was the problem. "Well come inside then!" she urged again but didn't leave it up to him: she took his hand, still looking thrilled – and sounding hyperactive – and dragged him inside.

Once the four seconds window was gone, she let go of him before he lashes out but still lead him into her "office" (that was where she kept all of her files); she walked past it though and he could see she was leading him to the counter she set up under the already existing lights of the room. There was a microscope right in the middle of the counter, a counter twenty centimetres wide and four metres long. Samples and syringes and all sorts of test tubes were around the big microscope in a forty centimetres radius. She was working on the acid – that much he knew – but the rest of the equipment seemed to be there for something else...

He waited till she spoke. She was still bubbly, excited and generally happy but he knew not why. It better have something to do with him though, or else!

"Look into the microscope, what you see?" she asked him just as excited and gestured at it; it was as if she couldn't sit still. He raised an eyebrow but looked at it nevertheless. "Well, what do you see?"

"...something I clearly don't understand."

"No, what you see is white cells, right? White cells."

"...they are something neutral. What does it mean?"

"They are blood cells and they are white! "Neutral", if you prefer it since you called it that. But do you know what they really are?" she didn't wait for his response—she knew what it would be but for some reason she asked anyway. "These are white blood cells called Basophil granulocyte. They are a very small minority of the white blood cells, of the category of granulocyte - _which basically means they are characterised by the presence of granules in their cytoplasm but that's irrelevant _- What's **relevant** is that these are the cells that are responsible for inflammatory reactions, especially those who cause _allergies_! I've injected them into something and see how they still maintain their colour? See how they do **not** react?"

Her tongue ran and ran and he had no idea what she was saying other than she was excited and something about white blood cells. _No, but who cares? Clearly not you. Obviously you just want to make your point, crazy broad._ "So?"

"So, so-so he says! _So_ he says! So I have just had a breakthrough; a real breakthrough, mind you, like one my aunt had!" she kept on being hyperactive and shaking him by the shoulders as she spoke. "I actually have something to show for all the experiments I've been running! I-I am...well, I think I am now a real scientist because I just discovered something."

Her satisfaction was driving him mad! There he was, moments ago about to snap and now she was telling him about scientific bullshit. What did he care? He made her stop shaking him – or else he'd probably break her arms – and glared. "...this is all you had to tell me?"

"Is thi-is this all, he asks? Is this _all_ he asks?" she kept asking in disbelief; as if she was talking to a crowd, her hands were spread out in front of her, making circles around him. "No, this is not all, I also made the acid and it's ready there on my desk" she said in one breath "but oh my God! I just did something amazing! I just sort of completed the research Nono assigned me and my aunt! I just—I just completed it! I finished it, it's done. It's _all_ done…"

His eyes grew a margin and then it dawned on him. What she was saying now made perfect sense. No, of course not the bash-something "Oh I'm a scientist" crap, but her excitement now made sense. She finished the task that was appointed to her aunt and now she was...successful. That was almost out of this world but it explained everything.

"...then you must tell Nono..." he said in the end, a similar self-satisfied smile taking over.

"Oh...oh right. Damn I forgot...wow wait; if I tell him he'll try to take-!"

"Well, you won't tell him now," said he matter-of-factly "but you'll wait till after we've killed Federico."

"Huh?" Yet, the nearly evil smile that now broke out on his face scared her a little, sullied her good mood. "What d'you mean?"

"Once all of his heirs are gone, we'll announce to Nono that you have reached somewhere with your research...it will be the best reason to draw him out, away from his Guardians and kidnap him."

The casualty in his voice stunned her. "Do _what_!?"

"Kidnap him. If I have to repeat myself every other time, this will take too long."

"You want to kidnap...kidnap Nono just so you can become the next head? You're willing to go as far as doing something like that to your own father?"

"My _father_" he spat the word like something sour "didn't hesitate to ice me up; I see no reason not to return the favour in kind. Besides, what have I told you about calling him that?"

"S-sorry," she said immediately, lowering her head "I forgot myself."

Yet, he said surprisingly did nothing more in reprimand, just stood there watching her; his smile returned and she made sure to note how disturbing the following would be. "...I am really eager to see your expression when I tell you of the rest of my plans...such as: I want you to find me a Gola Mosca. We have to put Nono in it."

Her chin dropped. Her eyes widened almost comically and she just kept staring at him. She wanted to swallow, but she couldn't. No sound came when she tried to produce some. She was literally speechless. The notion, the idea, never came to her before that Xanxus would try to actually murder his father by draining his life force to start a machine...

"Close it," he said imperatively "and don't look so shocked. Isn't that what you need, too? If I kidnap him, the one who will pose as him will not try to take your research away. So shut up and do as I say. And make enough acid to give to Mammon for our purpose."

She hated to admit it, but bringing up her research halted all of her protests, even made her think of it in a positive way.

_If he kidnaps him, he won't be taking your research_; said one voice. _Yet it is a bad thing and you know it_ said the other voice. _Yeah, but you get to protect your aunt's life work and now yours. But he will probably _die_ and he's not just an old man, but your boss, too! Nonsense, you are in the Varia now; you can afford to be a little selfish. But what if he orders to have you locked up when he returns? No, no, the correct one is: _if_ he returns...still, this is wrong._

The voices in her head kept battling it out in fierce debates about what was the best thing she could do. Suspiciously, one sounded much like Xanxus' heavy drawl and the other like her aunt's teacher-like tone. One verse of a roman poet about good and evil later, she decided to let it be.

"...fine," she said eventually and her neck still felt dry when she continued "but I want to be present when you off Federico. I mean, I must be, right? He is _my_ responsibility to shoulder. My first kill..."

"...suit yourself. I want the acid ready in a day."

She nodded and went immediately back to her work. He left her alone. Only when he was out of that room though did he realise he'd just failed to do what he originally intended: teach her, her place in this household. In fact, he believed he just gave her more room to act as she liked. Well, no matter. He was certain killing Federico would sooner rather than later shake her enough to stop being so…undisciplined. For her own sake that is.

It hadn't been too long afterwards, almost two days that all seven of them were gathered in the dining room. It was the safest place to do so because that meant food would be going down to their stomachs and – at least in Xanxus' case – he'd be less irritable. So, one course of food later that Francesca had cooked, they were all talking business. – What always struck her as odd was the fact they allowed her to cook for them even after she poisoning them! –

"Yesterday I received copious amount of the acid we need to kill Federico in my room. I take it the culprit is Francesca." Mammom said, nonchalantly.

"Yes I am; the boss ordered me to prepare it, so I did."

"Where are we with the matter of Michaela and that faggot Juliano?" Squalo inquired in cue.

"Oh~ I have that man under my thumb! He is so pissed off they killed off his boss, he is ready to attack Federico himself. He really believes _he_ did it. He keeps calling him a traitorous hypocrite, so I guess we're on a good track…I only have to wave my hand and he'll see red."

Everyone seemed satisfied, Lussuria happiest of all. "And what about your part of the mission, Squalo?"

"...she listens to me, and she is as vindictive as Francesca predicted she'd be. She's out for blood, I tell you that."

Francesca was oddly happy. "How fast do you think you can make her turn to the plan of murder?"

"Oh, tonight even! She's too worked up for anything less than blood."

"Ain't that good luck? All worked out exactly as you wanted them, u shi shi." Bel said, turning to the boss's nurse. She blushed, taking it as a compliment, and tried to look modest.

"I always try my best and, not to be too arrogant, most of my calculations are correct."

"Is that so? Then you won't mind orchestrating the hit on Federico, will you?"

She froze as soon as she heard the boss's words. She looked at him kind of lost. Was he trying to make her life harder or easier? She asked him to let her be there indeed but what he'd asked—was it a good thing? Did the responsibilities thus the trust in her increased or was he merely toying with her? Oh well, whatever!

She unfroze and smiled brightly. "No…I don't. In fact I think I can make a great plan! If you pass me as a…mysterious crime consultant and she is my client, I have a great plan to present her with."

The raised questioning eyebrow everyone gave her only served to make her resolve. "And if I succeed and nothing goes wrong, then you'll allow me a leave of absence, whenever I want, all expenses covered. What say you?" she pushed further, smiling.

"…If all your conditions are met then you'll get a pay check."

"Alright, but the leave stays. I'll just pay my expenses."

"No."

"But I-!"

"Fine" just as she was about to feel happy she'd get her way he said "you won't even get the pay check."

"What!? No, OK, I'm sorry, money; just give me the money then!"

"No. You decided not to accept my original offer."

"J-j-j-j-just" she stumbled on her own words for a little bit "please, just the money; and I've already come up with a great plan…"

It took a calculative stare and many moments later for him to say: "The exchange is tomorrow night. Make sure you wear something appropriate."

"Great!" _I think I can actually do this…_ "Where will the meeting happen? Obviously not here, I mean."

"You're right" Mammon intervened "we have a place no one knows is ours, a dock down at the port. This is where you'll be. Make sure you're ready by nine o'clock pm."

"As you wish." she said military-like and trotted away…

"I'm starting to think she should make a profession out of this—crime consultant sounds catchy. What do you think boss?"

Xanxus shrugged at Squalo's point. "If she doesn't fuck this up..."

"Aw, look at our boss being all nice…Boss-sama is the greatest." Lussuria chanted and clapped his hands. He stopped when the "go on; I dare you" look was casted his way.

.

"What the hell are you wearing?" came Bel's cruel remark.

She was walking out of her room, prepped for her night stroll—her first night stroll ever since she was brought in the Varia. Well, Nono's party didn't count. She just shrugged at him, with a faint yet confident smile. "I'm wearing what I think would be appropriate... for a criminal consultant. I mean, I've never heard anything like it before, so I wore anything I thought a person like that would wear."

"I suppose your title suits you, misses S, u shi shi…" She coloured immediately but he ignored her in favour of his laughing at her. "But, Mammon called for you. You need to be leaving…"

She glared but went on her way anyway. It was nine o'clock sharp when she met Mammon at the front door of the house. There stood Lussuria and Levi waiting for her, too but she knew they weren't needed. As soon as "mom" laid eyes on her though, he started coughing back tears.

She looked at him oddly. "Oh my daughter," he said between sniffs as he took a tissue out of his chest "you look astonishing. I indeed taught you well." He wiped at his eyes and smiled. "That cat-suit looks so amazing on your body!"

"Indeed Francesca!" shouted Levi and put a hand on her shoulder. "Your lack of curves helps with such close-fitting outfits. You truly are a proud disciple of our Lussuria."

"…your _taste though Levi-chan still lacks everything, including style. Look at those things coming out of your back! Horrible, really horrible."_

"_But you know those are my parabolas, Lussuria! My weapons! I could never betray the boss and be caught off guard. I would be sullying the name of Varia the boss has entrusted me with…"_

"You are ready. We should go." Mammon said finally when Lussuria started arguing with Levi; she nodded and followed after him as she walked away. "You look the part. You'll take the motorcycle the boss has for special occasions such as this, of not being recognised."

He threw her the keys of said vehicle; she caught them awkwardly, barely dropped them. "Um…I don't know how to ride one."

"…really?" he asked but didn't turn to her, while descending to the parking lot of the Varia villa-castle.

"Yeah."

"But only that isn't untraceable."

"But I cannot—"

"Do you know how to ride a bike?"

"Yeah, but it's hardly the same…"

Suddenly, he stopped walking between cars, and stopped in front of the very last piece of vehicle. It was smaller than the rest, covered by a sheet. When the baby pulled on it, it revealed a beautiful motorbike. It was black all over the seat and body, with grey sides and red lining. The tires were also of the same colour. It stood beautiful and grand.

"This must be expensive."

"It's an MV Agusta F4 1000 CC model, named after its creator Claudio Castiglioni. Of course, being a friend of the boss and Nono, he gave it to us at a better price with more power…and speed."

And then she realised. "And you want me to ride this killing machine…?"

As if he hadn't heard her, he went on to explain everything about it. "These are the brakes and the gas. This is the throttle; this is the clutch and the gear selector. When you do this" he revved the bike—how, when he's so small, she still had no idea "and you get that sound, you're good to ride. You use the clutch to engage and disengage the gear. Here is a manual on how to do it correctly."

He threw her the small book with a motorbike's tire and its attached shock absorber on the cover. The caption read "How to ride" in black writing in a white frame. "You leave in twenty minutes. It will take you twenty more to get to the docs with this bike. Read well. You better be gone when I come back."

She nodded, slightly mortified, and started reading the manual. "I forgot; _you_'ll pay for the gas. I'll take it off your fee…" he said and disappeared inside. She rolled her eyes but other than that didn't interrupt her reading again, not even when she heard a scream coming from the house, most possibly Levi's.

When ten minutes had passed, she started trying to ride this thing. She wished someone could do it for her and she simply rode on the back…! But she wouldn't get her wish and she knew it so she tried at half the time to see how it would be to practise all the theory she was soaking in. She got on the thing, put on the helmet and tried to make it start.

It didn't work.

The second and third time, something happened. At about the twelfth time, she managed to get the hang of it. _Success_, she thought and smiled. She tried to make it slide for real, but realised she couldn't without a gear. She tried to do as the manual – and Mammon – said. She managed it with the first try!

"Heh! I'm a natural at this. Now, let's add a little speed to the mix." She pulled on the gas a little and it moved. She smiled wider. But it was still going a little slow… "What's the problem? I mean, I'm hitting on the gas but it still…oh I know! The clu-AH!"

She lost control of the huge thing and ended pulling the brakes so hard, she flew off the top! "KYAH!" She landed on top of a window sill of a mustang. "Aaaah…my bones…"

She got up and went to the bike…which was of course knocked over. "Fuck. He will make me pay for this too. I have to blame it on someone else. Tch, I bet he'll have someone there at the doc to make sure it's alright, though. Oh I know; I can bargain for it. Well, if I keep crashing it though, I'll really have no excuse."

Many tries later, she managed to make it going relatively well. She actually took it out of the underground parking lot. She felt way too happy for such a simple feat, but she didn't care! She then managed to make a circle around the paved garden-entrance.

"Stop making circles and just leave. The GPS already has the location you want to go. It will talk to you and take you there."

"Oh. OK, thanks Mammon. Are you sure you don't want someone to take me there, like a random stranger or…?"

"No. Go."

.

.

.

"I am going to die." she kept repeating in controlled agony as she was riding the bike throughout town.

The GPS was being user-friendly and alerted her to every turn at least five hundred metres earlier but…there was still all those other cars to think about; and the traffic lights. She was used to the car, but there she was protected. Being on the bike, she felt way too vulnerable. Not to mention she kept the poor clutch almost always pulled. She let it go only on big straight roads. Especially when she took the turn, she hit the brakes all the time and the clutch and she had no idea how she managed to make this thing work.

She once actually fell off the bike. Many times she didn't start in time. Others, she almost ran into other vehicles. She wanted this just to be over with…

.

.

.

"And yet, I am alive," she muttered to herself when she made it to the dock she was instructed to go.

The bright lights had made her dizzy, so she tripped and fell as she got off the motorcycle. Her eyes had watered and her nose itched and she couldn't relieve herself because of the helmet! But thank God for it, too because now, she hit her head. She stayed there, lying on the ground for some time.

She tried to find her balance again or at least stop her head from spinning. She could feel the cold wind on her limbs even though she was perfectly still. She just wanted to relax and be nice and warm again!

"VOOOOOOOI! Get up and go in there before Michaela arrives!"

She started looking all around scared. "Wh-where did that-…? Squalo?" Last time she was hearing things, someone did it on purpose. But now?

"Your ear piece dumbass, you're still wearing it! Get up and go into the warehouse, before she arrives and take your position already damn it!"

"…where are you?"

"I'm on the roof. What, you thought I wouldn't be here?"

"…no…" _yes._

Like reading her mind, he snorted. "Just get in."

Begrudgingly, she got up, losing her footing a little. She was actually tired, she realised but she couldn't rest yet. She pulled herself together and made it into the warehouse. She found her spot – the one in the shadows – and waited there. There was a chair somewhere there and she sat like it was a throne. Then, she figured she'd better take the helmet off when she was in there, and leave it on one of the blocks there, in the light. Just to make sure Michaela would see it.

She cleared her voice once or twice and then tried it. She wanted to sound cool and curt; to the point kind of thing—that would be her approach. Her codename was, as they told her, Isabelle. And she imagined she was the best at what she did. So she had to sound confident, too. Suddenly, a movie set slipped into her mind and she knew she had to play this, like an actress…

"Stop with the weird noises. She's here."

In cue, light spilled into the warehouse as the door was dragged open. Francesca took her time crossing her feet, to make a show out of it to her "guest" who had just turned to her. "Welcome." Francesca's voice was deeper than usual, yet still distinctively female.

"Hello. You must be Isabelle. I am Michaela, your client," she said, being amiable. She started approaching the woman in the shadows, aiming for the block of boxes to sit on. "I came to you because one of the-."

"Save it; I know." She motioned at the place Michaela had started for. She didn't go on until she was sitting in front of her, obviously a little awkward. "What I don't know is what kind of death you seek."

"What are you talking about?"

Panicked, the woman almost stood up. Yet, Francesca didn't trouble speaking faster. She kept her pace and appeared to be tilting her head amused. "You want a man dead; what kind of death do you want him to suffer?"

Michaela let a breath she didn't know she was holding go. "Oh, right that's what you meant…so, Isabelle, first tell me: are you as good as the Varia say you are?"

"Tell me your preferred method of killing and stop wasting my time."

Oh dear; Francesca was enjoying this way too much! She felt like a professional, making a fine role come to life. Cut-throat cruel and always collected, she was nothing but a killing machine one brought to life with money. Though it was everything but her actual self, and maybe there lay the joy, she loved being this person she never knew before.

"Alright…I want to use acid. Hot, pure, flesh-scorching acid. I have it ready, too…"

That was the first sign Francesca had that the woman opposite her was a maniac; the satisfaction at the mere fantasy of him dying like that made her skin crawl. She was just a scientist and not even one of the Varia was so happy to murder someone. But she kept her cool at the surprisingly sadistic tone. "Is your goal to inflict maximum pain with the maximum damage?"

"You bet it is! I want him to hurt and suffer ten times more than I did when he took everything away from me; I want him to regret ever crossing me! I want him to fucking burn! Hell or no hell, he will boil in his own juices!"

Her voice let poison seep from it; her teeth clenched, she held herself back from hitting something or screaming! This woman had serious issues… "You will only answer what I ask; I have no interest in your reasons."

Then, she pretended she had to think this a little bit—the way to kill this man without leaving a trace behind. She sat back in her chair, crossing the other leg. Michaela took the hint and was absolutely silent… "How do you feel about acid rain?"

"How will that work? Won't it be too diluted to work if we add water?"

She clicked her tongue audibly in disapproval – or exasperation – and raised her hand to make her stop. "We trap him when he's somewhere inside. You remove all umbrellas from his sight and create fake rain with water…which of course you replace it with acid, as soon as he comes out."

"Oh. Oh…oh I like that. I really, really like that."

"You can add a paralyzing agent into the acid to stop him from moving; that way none will be able to react."

"Can I do that?"

"How should I know? Go ask a chemist."

"Alright…but if it does work then he'll be in agonizing pain till his last breath! I can watch from a distance as the searing of his flesh, slowly takes away all of his life force and then-."

"Yes, dying; exceptional. Now if you would give me half of the agreed-upon sum we're done for the moment. We'll reschedule for the day you have the acid for further details, when you shall present me with the other half of the money.

I then shall supervise the kill and once I see it successfully completed, you will wire me another one hundred thousand euros."_ Might as well get something out of this; maybe the boss won't give me my share._

"What?" she snubbed incredulous. "One million isn't enough for you!?"

"It's for other purposes." _Ooh, those bastards milked her good!_

"What other purposes could you have that I would care for!?"

"Let me put it this way: the million is for the plan. The one hundred is for my silence. I'm sure the man's father would not mind receiving an anonymous tip-."

"OK I get it! Jesus, are you greedy... Fine. But if he doesn't die then you get nothing other than _this_." she reluctantly said, making for the case she had at her feet that Francesca only just noticed.

But Francesca may have been slow to observe, but she was not one for slow responses. "I still get the one hundred, or I sing like a bird."

"Fine!" she barked and threw the case with the half a mil to "Isabelle's" feet. "And you better make good on your end or else…!"

Furious, she got up and marched to the door. "Have a nice weekend." She said, trying to sound threatening but the lack of response from the woman in the shadows only made _her_ more anxious. As Francesca smiled to herself, Michaela made her way to her car and got in…when her driver took her out of eyeshot, only then did Francesca received gthe order to stand up.

"Fuck yeah!"

She threw her fist in the air and then started making a weird little dance. _I did it! Oh yeah, oh yeah, I did it! _She mentally chanted as she kept going in circles like making a native American rain-dance.

"You scare me." Squalo was heard thorough the ear piece.

.

.

"Did she call you yet?" Mammon asked Francesca.

"No, but I know she is about to—only a matter of hours I presume."

"Heh! I bet my right hand she's too excited to think straight!"

"You don't want to lose both of them Squalo, do you?"

"Shut up! Where does the confidence come from anyway, trash? You're still the same trash you were ten days ago!"

She rolled her eyes; he might have been right, but at the same time, there was something very different about her. It was a confidence matter, Squalo was right. In fact, she only felt better, nothing more. Yet, apparently, it made a huge difference. And seeing the boss was rather…tame lately she had no source of frustration. The most extreme thing he did was to ask her in a very rude manner about her mission with Michaela while she was giving his serums.

That in itself was odd because it was him who'd asked Francesca to tend to him. The past month Squalo or other members were taking care of that part so it automatically seemed like an anomaly to her. But she figured he wanted to hear her side of the story first and then see what to do with it.

If things worked out, she heard from Lussuria, he might even give her this position for good! And that sounded more than satisfying to her…after all, her going to that dock was the first time she left the Varia household all by herself on a motorcycle. Naturally, ever since, she's been learning how to drive one…with the enlisted help of Mammon and Lussuria. Bel and Levi would come from times to times to either annoy or help but those two were the ones who did the most work.

It turned out Lussuria was an avid motorbike-lover and he knew everything – compared to her – about them. Mammon somehow also knew, though he was sketchy about the details. No matter what, she'd started learning and she was getting very good at it.

But the problem was different. Ever since she talked to that horrible, truly horrible woman in that warehouse, things happened. For starters, Michaela contacted Squalo who "reluctantly" agreed to help her with the poison even though she actually "stole" it from them. Then, he gave it to Francesca to come up with a variation of her acid, which of course she already had in her mind. She completed it, after mapping it out and testing for hours, in three days. Then Michaela was called and took it.

So, in total of six days later, they all waited for the moment that "Isabelle's" client would call for that second meeting, to kill Federico. A moment that would come soon no doubt, something that Squalo's bet made quite clear.

But what Francesca couldn't really understand was why, after all of her successes, Mammon appeared somewhat cross with her. She suspected it might have to do with the extra money she bargained for herself but with all due respect she needed the extra cash! They gave her nothing from all the other jobs so she might as well make a little extra on the side. Besides, if Xanxus said nothing about it, and he definitely knew, then Mammon had no say in it…huh. Maybe he did say something and he was shot down thus he's angry now? Yeah, that sounds legitimate.

Suddenly, the phone rang! All of the people present rushed over it, but it was true that only Francesca could answer it so they expected her to pick it up. When she did, she said: "This is Isabelle; speak fast whoever you are."

Lussuria laughed his "o ho ho" laugh, covering his mouth, while Levi gave her a very "loud" thumbs up. She rolled her eyes. "You're number eight "Michaela" so remember that; what do you want?" A small pause. "Aha; I don't care how you made it. Just tell me when you want to meet…not tomorrow. Not on Tuesday. Today works better for me. By there in two hours."

She hanged up immediately, not bothering to wait if she'll say something else, like she usually did when she was on the phone with her mother. She felt somewhat relieved actually…

"Wow; Franny-chan~! You're amazing! Look at you, handling that horrid woman so efficiently…oooh, I'm jealous of you."

"Indeed Francesca. You are worthy of being a proud Varia member. I shall reward you with the kiss of-"

"NO! No kiss, thank you. Err, could someone tell the boss I have to-!"

"VOOOOOOOI! What are we, your secretaries? Go do it yourself—you have two whole hours to prepare!"

"But-."

"He's right; good luck Franny-chan!"

"Oooh, fine; leave me alone then."

* * *

><p>End of chapter! I hope you had a great time and please leave a review. They are much appreciated.<p> 


	17. Acid, blood and dungeons

**A/N**: Hello there my wonderful readers. I am so very sorry for the long wait! Extra big chapter to make up for it. Thank you all wonderful people who reviewed (and special thanks to my beta-reader **Orihara Izaya**); you give me so much support, I love you even if I haven't met you.

Oh and of course I own nothing but Fransesca and her family. And maybe some other characters but never mind you know the ones I don't.

* * *

><p>"Ooh, fine; leave me then to do it all on my own…" she snapped, crossing her hands. But even before she finishes, everyone had disappeared. Those cowards.<p>

=:=:=

"Boss, I brought you the serums."

He didn't speak, so she simply walked in as he followed her with his eyes, very grumpy and very annoyed. "Also, Michaela has finally called me. Just did in fact. We'll meet in two hours at the docks like the previous time. I'll take your motorcycle again."

"I _know_."

She stopped for a moment, stumped merely because of the tone he deployed. Obviously, he was not very happy with…stuff. No wonder they left her all alone with him. "Great; now I'm going to go. Get dressed and leave. Bye-bye…"

She turned tail and ran the hell out of there just before a shout from him was heard requesting something very rudely. She didn't stop to listen what it was, even if she'd regret it later.

=:=:=

At the designated time, she was at the dock already. She was wearing something relatively similar to the previous time she met the vengeful woman though this once, she was much more skilled with the bike. In fact, she had a stupid smile on her face, so uncharacteristic for the person she was pretending to be, only because she managed to not fall, not even once!

She entered the warehouse first. This once her security had been the bug Squalo had installed into her underwear, that now she knew about – how she found out was ugly for the white haired man: he plummeted to the ground repeatedly or more accurately, she plummeted him repeatedly to the ground with many booby traps as he ran away –.

Thus, she was somewhat at ease when that crazy bloodthirsty woman came in the place Francesca was nesting in—the same as the previous time in order not to confuse her. Francesca's face was still hidden in the shadows but this once her hair helped with that, scattered all over her face intentionally. Made her look wilder, too, she decided and she liked this look better. The moment Michaela entered, she harrumphed and drew her attention.

"Oh, you're here already…" said she mildly disappointed and went closer to the already seated "…crime consultant".

Why was she disappointed? That was odd. Francesca was no shrink but that seemed suspicious. Maybe she wanted to know her identity for her own purposes, maybe to scare her away from the extra money she requested. Heh! No matter what though, she wouldn't be caught by surprise, she wouldn't mess this plan up. It was hers and she wanted it executed perfectly. Did that make her obsessive for some reason? She thought not.

But she had been wrong before.

"So, the new and improved acid is ready. You were right; there was a scientist that managed to make it like you said."

"Their name?" she asked; she wanted to see if the Varia elite were being honest with her when they said her name was not involved.

And Michaela's awkwardness confused her. "…oh, I um, I didn't-…I mean I just gave it to the Varia and they knew a guy and gave the acid to them—the same way I met you, I had the acid made."

"Which means?" she probed annoyed. At least, this she didn't fake.

"I don't know his name, I didn't even meet him."

_His? Well, that is awfully stereotypical of her, _she thought a little miffed, yet she was very pleased that not only had she no idea who she really was but she didn't even get the gender right. "..Fine," said she as if she was disappointed she didn't know the scientist "now we'll focus on the plan."

Suddenly her whole body language turned…professional and she crossed her legs the other way. "In three days from now, you will find yourselves - you and your target - in the restaurant 'L'Ottava Nota'. It's the target's favourite as my sources tell me.

There, you will keep him from the moment you arrive – eight o'clock or later – till at least ten pm. Me and my team will have to make the installations for the fake rain and the acid. No matter what, you have to keep him there till then. We must operate under the cloak of night which is our drive for going through with the hit the certain time.

If the attempt fails, which I know it won't, I won't take the rest of my fee, but I will get the extra. Is that clear to you, number eight?"

Michaela's face became sour, having no intention of hiding her displeasure about the extra she had to pay. But that was…extremely straightforward. Francesca hadn't expected such display of honesty from her. Was that a good thing or bad? Maybe she planned on disposing of her when the job is done in which case she definitely needed protection.

She made a mental note to mention this to the Varia. If she was truly in need of some or any form of protection, they would be the one to take care of it. And it was a very tricky situation, too: they couldn't kill her since she was their scapegoat but they also couldn't let her do as she liked. So, she would steer clear from that woman and make sure there were no snipers around. Or any airborne viruses. Or even bombs near to where she'd be stationed.

Damn, this assassin business was hard! She had a lot to think about. Was this what the others went through every day before going in for a kill? If so, she could see why they are always on edge (naturally that meant Xanxus, who always did nothing but lie around, was never excused).

When she received no answer from the devious angry woman, she asked again. "I shall not repeat myself."

"Yes, I believe you made it very clear." If possible, she was even bitterer than she looked. That was a feat in Francesca's eyes.

"I'll be there watching, making sure. You will contact me in the same number once the hit is complete and only then – successful or not – to arrange the last details. Capiche?"

She nodded.

"Now leave."

Offended beyond reason that anyone dared boss her around, Michaela stood up furious and balled her fists. She appeared to be debating with herself over what to do next; apparently her peaceful or at least calculative side seemed to win the fight as she just turned-about and left the warehouse. God help her if Michaela targeted her—or more accurately, Varia help her. Speaking of which, which Varia member was tailing her this night?

"Ahem, guys, which one is watching over me tonight?"

"U shi shi, she's scared."

"…yeah, whatever, just make sure you keep a close eye on her and I don't end up under some bridge, lifeless and cold. She sure has some weird gleam in her eyes when she looks at me. Did I do something to her?"

"Tch, of course we have someone doing that. I'm not needed. I'm here only in case she decided to lash out on you."

"Oh."

That was unexpected, she thought. "Since when?"

"…Since the first time you were stationed here…"

"Who called this?"

"Who else you dumb broad? The boss did!"

That was Squalo's voice. "You're here, too?"

"I'm in charge of Michaela you stupid woman! How can I _not_ be here?"

"Oh…ok." First of all she had no reason to believe the boss would ever consider measures for her safety and secondly how could she know he was _always_ after her? "Well, anyway, I know this might sound ridiculous to you but, um…I would prefer if you could protect me when we meet with her to kill Federico. I fear she wants to kill me and she'll use-…!"

"Get your ass back home and we'll talk there you stupid broad. Get moving now!"

That was the last order she received for the day. She took the helmet in her hands, put it on, and then walked out to the bike.

Back home they made a long talk about the precautions. Xanxus agreed that she needed someone to keep her safe and out of harm's way for no other reason than he wouldn't get the money if she croaked—how very thoughtful of him, she mused. So Mammon was burdened with the task of protecting her but only if absolutely necessary. In her mind, that was immediately translated into "if you are about to die, we'll pull you out". Marvellous.

Three days later, at eight o'clock sharp, there they all were at L'Ottava Nota; most of them were hidden as only Francesca was allowed to be seen and even she should be far enough to retain the elusive aura she worked so hard to establish. She herself was still nervous and very jumpy, but she did all she could to appear unaffected. Clad in a leather motorcycle uniform in the colours of black and yellow, she stationed herself on a roof top, one block away from the restaurant. It had taken a long time for random Varia members to find this place – members she'd never seen before – and they even made sure it was clear of all sorts of traps. She was equipped with a gas mask in case anything airborne was released and even went as far as requesting a hand gun for her protection in case push comes to shove.

They settled for a Nighthawk Talon 5 1911.

She had no idea such small guns existed but she thought if she was going to defend herself better not take a killer. When she examined the gun for the umpteenth time she still found it too small to be too dangerous. That started to sound bad in her head the more she thought about it and the advantage of not being able to kill with one shot morphed into a serious flaw. What if she couldn't protect herself with it?

She could still remember that time she used the machine gun to kill those people and it hadn't felt…real to her. It was as if she was putting them to sleep with a more extreme method—she didn't even dare ask if any of them managed to escape death because she feared the answer. Even to this day she didn't want to think about it, successfully repressed it. But now, as she looked at this peculiar gun, mixed feelings and memories came to surface. She wanted to be able to kill in one shot but she didn't feel all too well with that at the same time. She felt thankful this gun might have been less powerful but she feared for her life if it didn't get the job done at once.

She sighed and decided to watch the other Varia members she had no idea they existed, as they installed the fake rain dispensers. It distracted her enough to stop thinking about the gun hidden in her boot. She sighed again as she realised she was doing all these for the sake of killing another human being after all…and then she became aware of it again and she grew depressed.

This affair was making her feelings go all over the place. It had to do with the fact she's finally coming to terms with the idea that she's finally going to be completely responsible for the death of another human being. She'd been justifying herself about the deaths at the island as being forced to do it since her survival depended on it but this…this was so much different and it was now happening. Plus, after this, _**he**_ told her they'd kidnap Nono. And drive him to his death by exhaustion. And then she'd feel responsible for the death of two people, from which none of them would be the angry woman who hired her.

Wow where had that come from? So much spite in her mind when she thought of Michaela…oh well, she didn't really care. She took a deep breath and looked forward.

It'd been two hours and she didn't even realise. How time flies when she broods…! Looking at the scene developing with her binoculars, she saw their plan being realised: Federico was walking out; the "rain" was long falling; and when he walked out the door, they switched and pure hot acid showered him.

She was too far away yet she felt she could hear them all the same: Federico and just two of his men that remained started shaking, screaming and grabbing on to their skin; they wanted to run away, but the damage was too extensive – there were also people there ready to stop them, but they didn't know that –. All they did know was that something scorching rained down upon them and their skin literally fell off their bones. All they could do was scream, shout, fear and wait for an awful death.

She looked away disgusted; but then she looked at them again. This was her doing, all of it—from top to bottom. She deserved the horror she was witnessing; she'd told Xanxus as much, too. She was too far away to see without binoculars and by no means could she actually hear them but in her mind all was too loud and vivid. As they fell on their knees, she promised not to look away again out of respect for the dying men.

But…they were dead now, on the cold stone road, their bodies nothing but a heap of clothes, bones and some tissue. She looked through the binoculars for another reason this once; though she felt disgusting and heartless, she had to access the amount of damage and record it before she left for good from this place. She needed to know how much of the acid was used, too. She could see it wasn't used in its entirety so it'd be great for documenting. She already had the density and the velocity in which the acid hit these people so she knew exactly how much it hit them. All she had to know now was the amount…

She felt dirty about this killing…but at least she had something to distract herself with.

"They are dead…"

Just what she needed: more guilt in the form of Mammon. "Well, that was what I had to do and I daresay job well done."

Just as Mammon was about to say something, her cell phone rang; the caller ID wrote "Crazy Bitch"—it was Michaela. They looked at each other, him like daring her not to answer and her completely breath-taken. She slid her finger on the screen, harrumphed and answered the call. "This is Isabelle."

She stood there in silence for a little while until she said again: "I can see you. If you attempt to run away without paying me something bad will happen. If you cross me, something _very_ bad will happen. And if you even think of hurting me" she pulled down her hand; that was the code for firing to that insane woman "something worse will happen."

She heard the shot through her phone and then she herd the other woman whimper; very good. Now, at least, she was scared. "So let me hear you again on where you want us to meet **now** to give me the 600." After a small pause, she said "be there in two hours" and hanged up.

"You're starting to get the hang of this. Soon enough you'll be asking us to let you in on other jobs. You like killing, nurse?"

"…no, of course not. I detest your question."

"Where will this meeting be?"

"She said in the warehouse where we always met…am I sure that place is safe?"

"No you aren't" came the rapid response from Squalo on her earpiece "we haven't checked that out today. Why the hell would you agree to go to a place even you yourself knew might be compromised you damn broad? Now if anything happens it's going to be my ass on the line…! VOOOOOOOOOOOOI! Are you even listening to me?"

There was indeed a pause but not due to lack of attention—she was thinking. "Hush, now…I'm trying to think of a plan. Look, I need bigger fire power than my stupid handgun and I definitely want protection from numbers, but I know you'll be there so that sets me somewhat at ease.

Now, can you tell me how much acid was put in the dispensers?"

"Why is that relevant," came Bel's question?

"I have to know; I made it! I need the percentages if you want me to make more in order to calculate-"

He cut her off promptly to answer her annoyed: "ten litres of it; I made it look like heavy rain, but it was ten litres."

"…ok, that's five litres remaining. Where is **that**?"

Suddenly, all lines were silent and she didn't like it one bit. "I asked where the remaining five litres are. Are they not accounted for?"

First to talk was Mammon next to her. "That wench stole from us; she claimed only ten litres were delivered to her so she paid only that much."

"She has five litres of acid at her disposal and we don't know where it is? Oh my, that is not so good boys," Lussuria's voice broke the new silence over the microphone and made a characteristic "tch" sound…

"…what if she plans killing _me_ with it?" She was so scared, her voice was too high pitched and it almost failed her. She chocked on her breath and coughed. "Honestly, I believe she'll try it—she's mental! You haven't seen that sadistic gleam in her eye when she talked about killing Federico; now I know what she's planning… Ugh, no wonder she was so quick to recover from the shock on the phone. She's already made plans! Guys, please, you have to help me. And I know just how but we have to be extra quick."

Forty five minutes later they'd arrived at the place of meeting. They'd made sure _she_ hadn't arrived first and then went inside to try and look for the installations. When they had in fact found them, she almost collapsed. But the plan she'd devised and revised to match some details whilst sitting on the floor on her feet and bum – as no one cared enough to hold her, and Levi had been too far away – she shared it only with them…

"She sure took her sweet time coming here," Bel noticed in a whisper when Michaela entered the warehouse ten minutes later than the appointed time. Squalo raised his hand in an attempt to make him stop. It worked.

"You're late" sounded Francesca's strict remark to her "and I don't like being kept waiting."

She saw something akin to a smile appearing on Michaela's lips but it disappeared too fast. No matter, she was the one who'd be laughing in the end. She held herself back from checking her thigh or the place beside her to make sure her guns were in place. She knew they were anyway, she just wanted the security; she may play hard ball but she's still as frightened for her life as ever.

"If you'll excuse me, it won't happen…ever again."

"I won't be seeing you _again_, thus it's only natural," said she curtly and nodded the same way with her head. "The money; slide it over to me. With your foot."

"As you wish…"

She was being too coy, and Francesca was feeling too bad. She knew she devised a whole plan and _she_ was the one who asked for things to work this way even if it meant endangering herself, yet she couldn't help that small tremble she was hiding in her hanging arm.

As she was sitting in her regular place though, always hidden in the shadows – this once with half a mask on to make sure her face wasn't even by accident shown – Michaela kicked the money forward, where it stopped three metres away from Francesca's feet. "Humph, making me stand to count—how ungracious of-"

But she didn't get to finish her sentence; a small chuckling sound and before she manages to ask her why, the other woman seemed to push something from within her pocket. When she took it out, it revealed a small remote control device…and the remaining acid of five litres all rained down upon Francesca.

She fell to the ground weak, trying to put her head between her legs to prevent the damage—but to no avail. The acid was too much and she was uncontrollably convulsing on the ground. She wasn't dead—Michaela wasn't aiming for dead, but for too weak to act. And then, when the acid stopped and she saw her second plan for the night, come into fruition she triumphantly went to the burns-ridden woman for the final blow. She smiled and held the big calibre gun an inch away from her. "Bye-bye, Isabelle," she chanted and pulled the trigger…

…only to have a man-sized mirror brake into hundreds of tiny pieces and shower her! "Eep" breathed she scared and took many steps back, trying to avoid the cuts and bruises. "What the h-?"

Gunfire echoed deafeningly in the warehouse and though it missed the intended target, it certainly made ears bleed; Michaela was now looking behind her stricken, speechless and hearing-less: the masked "Isabelle" was standing in front of her with her handgun at the ready, one bullet already spent. Her eyes looked angry and…pointed, somehow, as if they could pierce, she almost felt the pain on her skin. As if she concentrated all of her hate into that look and threw it at her.

"Trying to kill me, too are you? Funny; even after I warned you of the consequences two and a half hours ago…yet you still misbehave. You think I wouldn't see through your ridiculous plan? I have eyes everywhere." Lussuria then informed her that they'd just slashed the throats of ten out of the thirteen men outside and the rest surrendered. It would make her look cooler to say, he said. She agreed and smirked, even if the woman couldn't see it. "I even know that ten of your men died while the other three now belong to me. Is that warning enough for you now?"

The colour was drained from her face in an instant and she started opening and closing her mouth for no reason. "Yes well, I feel generous today," said she nonchalantly, waving her other hand around "so I won't kill you. But you see, I'm not too nice of a person I guess so-"

Without a warning, she fired her gun twice; leg and leg. Only one hit, but it was more than sufficient: found her on the patella—in other words her knee cap. She fell to the ground with a scream as blood and bits of destroyed bone sprayed. "I'll still shoot you." With all the death she witnessed today, shooting at this woman she could honestly say she hated, was no trouble at all. It even helped her forget about Federico's death.

Michaela started sobbing and her face was distorted with fear, anger and disbelief; was this really happening to her, she must have been wondering? How had this Isabelle woman figured and trampled her plan? It was ridiculous, she must have thought. Though she'd everything figured out and-"UUUGH!" pain ran through her like water and though she wanted, she just couldn't go numb!

"Are you trying to _think_? Don't bother; it's wasted on a person like you," mocked Francesca from her position of power as she pressed upon her destroyed knee cap. Michaela screamed again, fighting for freedom but Francesca easily put the gun to her hand and the threat was made clear. "If you be a good girl now and stop moving altogether, I'll take my money and go. If you keep trying to make stupid moves, I'll shoot your hand and be done with it. I mean, you'll never walk properly, ever again, don't let that happen to your hand, too."

She whimpered and nodded; Francesca walked to the money, counted them and picked them up. "All here. Glad doing business with you." She walked _over_ the sprawled hands and her long trench coat licked her victim's face. She'd worn it just to do that, in fact, when she chose it almost an hour ago. She went to the place she was first situated, picked up her submachine gun and then left the warehouse.

"Oh and a fair reminder: do not ever annoy or come after me again. I **will** kill you," she chimed as she reappeared at the half-opened door of the warehouse. "Arrivederci."

She never looked back. She took the money, took her weapons, and left for good; that warehouse would be nothing but a distant memory—that's what she wanted. She strapped the submachine gun on; she put the handgun in its place and mounted the bike. "Someone clean the acid and shoo Michaela. I'm done." She was trying not to sound too broken.

But she then remembered that Bel and Squalo were in the warehouse with her; "I don't care what you plan on doing with the remaining people but make sure no one talks. Bye."

Unceremoniously, she took off her ear piece and put it in her pocket; then she wore her helmet and started the big monster underneath her, which roared into life. She put the case with the money in between her legs while she also put the handcuff it had to the side on, in case something happened. Maybe if she concentrated on menial tasks like these, the horrors of tonight would go away. Just go away… "And now, finally, to home." she whispered with a trembling voice; she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. The images, the screams of the people dying that she never heard yet her mind was plagued by for the last two hours, stayed though she cast them away. She wished nothing other than for them to go away, but they would reappear every time she shut her eyes.

She hated herself in that moment.

. .

. . .

"You smell like shit."

"You smell like booze…"

No sooner had she returned home, than she found the boss almost waiting for her in the entrance of her lab. How did he even know she'd go there opposed to her room? That was unnerving—and tiresome; she just wanted to get this done and then go wallow in self-pity or something. But just like her, who had no intention of coddling anyone right now, neither had he: the moment she talked back at him, he threw her the glass he was holding. It hit her on the back. Surprisingly, it didn't break on her but it had to fall on the floor to shatter into pieces. Still, the whiskey sprayed her. Great: now she had bone blood _**and**_ alcohol to wash off.

"Ouch," she snapped without looking back at him. In fact, she went on like he wasn't there anyway: she placed the ear piece on her counter, took her gloves off; left the guns somewhere that was safe, threw the case full of money to the floor and then went to her chair. All mechanical, all automated. Like she had no conscience of her actions and she just tried to postpone dealing with her guilt:

She would first make these final assessments on her acid and then would she go have a bath; a very long bath. Long enough to wash away all of her shame. And the smell, like Xanxus pointed out…So she sat down, took a pencil in her hands and after she found the correct document, she started scribbling. "Ouch," she made the sound again, but this once she hissed it; rubbing her head to ease the pain, she turned with eyes like slits to the offender. "What?"

"Don't ignore me bitch! Report!"

She really fought the urge to roll her eyes, but it eventually won out. "We killed Federico; I took the money. Crazy woman tried to kill me to keep it, but I shot her instead. The guys are cleaning up as we speak. There's the briefcase," she said lazily and pointed with her head at the direction she threw it. If anyone asked her, those were money well-earned but she just wanted nothing to do with it. It made her feel dirty.

"And what are you doing in your lab instead of helping them?" while he was interrogating her, he went towards the place she indicated.

"…I have no reason to; I instructed them how to dispose of the remains of the acid so they won't burn their hands, I see no reason to stick around. I'm tired thus I left."

"That's not how it works."

She couldn't tell if he was actually mad at her for leaving or he was just being argumentative due to being bored; after all, he couldn't participate in these killings and it must have been driving him insane. Especially since he's stuck in here the whole day without exception...She decided to be the bigger person tonight – for once –. "I did not know; sorry."

"…what are you doing anyway," asked he half-distracted? He was counting the money and it looked like it was a very interesting task.

"Oh…I um…record the effects of my acid for future reference. Volume, amount, how much it was dispensed in any moment sort of thing; it helps," she admitted shrugging and suddenly she didn't know if she were speaking for the scientific aspect or her guilt.

"Go to sleep."

"Wh-hey! The one hundred are mine! Don't take those," she protested as she saw him leaving with the whole sum; she might not want it, but that extra? It was her consolation prize. She wanted to buy herself a new microscope and some books—and maybe a very big and good stash of chocolate…

"Go the fuck to sleep."

She spoke no more but he could hear her inarticulate complaints through the walls of the mansion…she in fact went to the bathroom in the end but since she didn't bother him again that night, he left her alone. In the beginning he'd thought she'd drowned herself in the tub, but Squalo, who came back just as she was going to her room, reported she went to bed at four am.

. . .

. .

The next days were passing in a relative calmness; she knew it was the calm before – yet another – storm as she couldn't help but remember what Xanxus had said she'd be doing after killing Federico. In fact, maybe the days were relaxed in the aspect that no one bothered her, but her own mind was far from tranquil. She didn't stop thinking not for a moment about what she did. She killed a man. She killed him on her own and though the others offered assistance that's all they did—assisted.

She was the one responsible. She was merely unable to wrap her mind around that. She thought she'd be okay given the murder gave her some sense of belonging in the squad but other than that, nothing. And was that even worth it to begin with?

She'd originally reckoned it did but now she wasn't of the same opinion. Nothing but horrible nightmares of disfigured or burnt men came to mind, incidentally with the same burns of Federico while he was dying. His anguished face haunted her to this moment and all she could do was cry, shiver and try not to think about it. She'd pray to God often then, asking for forgiveness. But she felt it never came. Probably because she herself thought she didn't deserve it. She'd done a tremendously atrocious deed and she should suffer.

She'd barely gone out of her rooms the whole week—when she had to sometimes cook or administer medication to the boss would she leave the sanctuary of her lab or her bed. In her lab she worked the day – or night – away and that was a wanted distraction. In her bed she would read her novels or do something on the computer so it was also a nice distraction. She simply couldn't go to sleep because the nightmares would begin anew. Nor could she look upon the rest while maintaining a straight face, so she decided the less contact, the better.

Lussuria was the only one who seemed to care about her predicament – though apparently all realised it as they'd tease or snap the few times she ran into them – who lovingly brought her chocolates. Truffles were her favourite he found out as those would always ran out the fastest. Other times he brought her books. But he'd be a dear and bring her things to cheer her up regularly. When he brought her some scented tissues she'd been so grateful because at least her nose would smell something nice.

But on the "mark" of the eighth day, Bel came into her room with his usual smirk even wider than she'd used to see it. As spooked as she'd never been, she felt her skin crawl and her hands shook. "Hello Francesca."

"_Hi_" she drawled full of relief when he actually spoke to her "what do you want?"

"Oh nothing important; the boss wants to see you about that thing you talked about…about Nono."

Her throat dried almost immediately. That must have been the last thing she wanted to hear right now; as if she didn't have enough guilt about killing his son, now she would go on and hurt him, too? That seemed too cruel in her opinion. Maybe her boss had told her, her involvement would be miniscule but important and she'd have to do nothing but just stand there yet she was the most important part. She'd be the reason Nono would even be there. So in fact, it would be her fault Nono would be captured.

She cracked her neck and stretched her legs and took a deep breath. "Exactly what I needed," she snubbed with every bit of sarcasm she could muster. She looked at Bel then. "Well, what are you waiting for? Leave so I can change." When he didn't respond, she "shooed" him away with her hand.

But he didn't move. He only gave his too-wide-to-be-sane smirk and drawled: "…you know I have seen you in the bath, right? You were there…"

She turned her eyes to him slowly and they appeared deceptively calm and mellow; she opened her lips gingerly as she said: "oh, I'd almost forgotten about that…but since you mention it-"

. . .

As Squalo was passing in front of the "lab" of the house, Francesca's workplace, only some metres away from her room, he heard a deafening screech: "Get out NOOOOOOOOW!"

And then the door to Francesca's room was opened abruptly, a laughing Bel was seen storming out, while various projectiles crashed behind him. He shook his head and rolled his eyes. Hadn't Bel learnt already from when she started throwing knives at the boss? The woman was unstable! He sighed and went about his business like he'd seen nothing.

. . .

"I'm here boss; what was it that you needed?" She knew what he wanted, but she had this faint hope he was only trying to be a sadist and for some reason make her feel like shit or something similar and it had nothing to do with his father.

"…it's time you made yourself useful. Your research, I want it."

But it was a false hope and she knew it from the moment she looked at him, even before he spoke. His stance, his intense stare, the way he was sizing her up…everything said he was trying to discern how ready to do this she really was, considering she spent her days crying her eyes out. "So it is time…?"

He looked at her as if she was saying something completely unnecessary; she gave a small smile which showed she recognised her slight in an effort to appease him. He looked away unbothered again and went on. "I need you to be ready; no more crying and no more eating alcoholic chocolates—you remember what happened to your aunt."

She was taken so much by surprise she couldn't do anything else other than staring as the breath hitched in her throat.

_H-h-h-h-h-how can he bring her up now of all times? And in such a situation, too…_, she thought affronted but couldn't even begin to voice her concerns and objections. She still hadn't gotten used to anyone—_anyone_ talking about her aunt and how much more like…like **that**! Accusingly and derogatorily as if her aunt was nothing but the family's drunk who everyone simply put up with and not the amazing scientist that she was!

"Stop looking at me agape."

"Donut" _wait what did I just say?_ "Do know-" _oh god, what am I saying?_ She shook her head and cleared her mind.

"**Do not**" she emphasised, finally getting it right "talk about my aunt like that! I know she made a terrible mistake, one she wasn't supposed to, but why aren't you over the moon about it? Isn't it because of her drinking you were released on the first place? If she were sober she never would have visited you or never would have lost consciousness enough to touch your ice and set you free!

You should be thankful to her for problem because that's the only reason you're here so you don't dish it out."

She would hear none of it; come what may she would defend her aunt's memory. He could do whatever he wanted, she'd take it, and she didn't care. He wouldn't outright kill her—she was far too important to his plan now, so anything else is bearable. She balled her fists; then looked away, too red from shame and anger to keep a straight face or continue looking at him. After all, it wasn't a secret he was a heartless bastard so she blamed herself, too for being so angry. She should have expected such a low blow from him…but it came so suddenly!

…Just as sudden as the next, when Xanxus actually stood up from his luxury chair grabbed her by the neck and brought his hand down as if it would tire him to keep it raised. "Are you saying I am in your aunt's debt for freeing me?" He squeezed the nape and she winced. "Huh?" He shook her a little and the hair that was trapped under his palm rubbed against her skin and irritated it. "Do you imply that because of her mistake I was released I should immediately discard the fact she made one, too?"

Feeling defiant, she tried to look at him in the eye. "Yes—to both!" But she failed to be too defiant—she shut her eyes and awaited the oncoming blow. She knew it wouldn't end well for her but she didn't care; just this once, she wouldn't fold under his pressure. Just this once he said something she couldn't ignore. It was one of these things that a person, with even a hint of pride left in them, couldn't leave undefended. But she knew that worked both ways and it so happened that even the smallest of grazes to his ego were a cause for defence.

She felt him dragging her around the room and finally throwing her away; she lost her balance and fell gracelessly to the floor. She knew better than to lie there still; she immediately picked herself up and went for the door—a strong push to the chest stopped her from doing either one. She tumbled once again. She hurt her butt as she collided with the ground.

She finally opened her eyes and saw he was standing in front of her at his full height; he then dropped down to match her height as he bent his knees and sat on his shin. "Both?"

She didn't dare speak; he grabbed the collar of her shirt "both!?"

She closed her eyes as she swallowed her own spit. "Yes, both. You owe my aunt; you should overlook that one mistake. Think of it as repaying that debt—you don't get to speak ill of her again. Speak badly of me instead; at least _I'm_ alive."

He wasn't beneath hitting women apparently and she quite felt the hit when it landed; but that was all she felt. In the next few moments she lost her consciousness—what did she hit her head on? There was no way it was only his hand that did such damage…but it was fine, she knew it was coming. She deserved it anyway, with all she did, she knew she should be punished somehow; this was fitting. Could it be that that was why she incensed him on the first place—because she wanted him to hit her? She felt bad for what she did and used her aunt as an excuse…? With that terrible thing as her last thought, she collapsed on his carpet.

When she opened her eyes again, she was still lying on the floor of his room, on the carpet she once had scrubbed clean from blood with her own hands; it hadn't been too long as Xanxus was standing over her with his hands hanging to his sides, while looking down at her. She was unfocused for the first couple of minutes, seeing two men with raccoons in their hair instead of one, but she managed to steady her eyesight when she realised he was losing patience.

"How long are you going to lie down there for? We have work to do."

"R-right," she muttered as she grabbed on to her head which hurt like hell. She stood up though a moment too fast, as she almost fell down again—he had to grab her hand and pull her up abruptly to make her stick. In fact, he did it so violently, she crashed into his chest. She was wobbly as hell.

"Oh please, I didn't even hit you. I just threw you a book," he complained when she, unsteady as she was, clashed onto his back when he turned to walk out – thinking she'd be following him.

"Was it an encyclopaedia? That stuff was brutal."

"No, it was a thesaurus." Wait; did she actually make him say that out loud? "Now move." He just said that out loud. What the hell?

"Um…where are you taking me?"

This once he held himself back from snapping an annoyed "to the dungeons" quip. He was being too nonchalant. What the hell was wrong with him? He tried to calm his inner beasts by rolling his eyes painfully slow and kept on leading her, more annoyed than ever.

"Are we going to the lower part? The holding cells…? Are you going to chain me up! Oh no, please! I've heard rumours of this place. Please don't put me down there. Sure, I was a little flippant but that sort of punishment hardly seems appropriate. Isn't it too severe? It was just one comment-fine, conversation—ok, maybe it's happened twice but please, don't put me down there!"

While she was vehemently protesting what she thought to be his choice, he kept leading her down and low and deeper into the mansion-castle. As they changed levels, she could feel that same chill that ran through her when she was a prisoner at Ottabio's. It was as if the whole place down there was made by the same cold, unfriendly material. She shook and an illogical fear came over her: she'd be spending her life trapped down there just as he was trapped in that ice. She had no idea if he planned to let her go when the eight years of his confinement ended – she definitely didn't take it as a given – but he wanted to do to her the same they did to him. But reversed! Now he'd be the ward and she'd be the prisoner.

So she kept on protesting, never stopping for a moment. "I mean, come on; you can't just lock me up in here—my parents know where I am and they'll come looking. And—and many more people I met at my party, I'm sure. Besides, it hardly seems a fair punishment. I get you being angry at your father or my aunt but dumping me in here doesn't make it any better; and how will you receive your regular treatment with me down here anyway? I'm much more valuable to you upstairs…"

She stopped when he did; he turned around to look at her at the very end of the prison-like chambers and looked at her with his usual mask of boredom and annoyance. The light had long gone out but he was using his flames as a flashlight and a guide for the woman behind him. Without gracing any of her ranting with a response, he simply showed her the dimly illuminated wall. "What of it?"

But she noticed or, more fittingly, she felt like she didn't see the whole room, even though she'd reached its end. There was nothing but a stone wall in front of her. Yet when she first entered she felt like she'd have to walk at least more five Xanxus-paces more to reach the end of it. She'd walked the halls of the house so much that she got used to its size from one end to the other. But maybe she was wrong…huh?

But her question didn't go unanswered this once: out of the blue, he pointed to a spot on the wall; where he pointed, the fire went. She followed the little ball of heat and light and saw it flame over a certain…stain thingy. _What exactly is that_, she thought perplexed and though she knew better not to touch foreign substances, she did it anyway. To her surprise though, it wasn't gooey or wet—it was solid! Looks could be very misleading apparently as she'd swear it was a liquid that half-dried up there. Yet it wasn't; it was plastic, from what she could understand with her sense of touch, dressed to look like something else.

And the moment she ran her finger over it, quite forcefully indeed, it receded_. Wow, it did? It didn't look like it was an inch away from the wall…_she thought again even more intrigued and waited for something to happen. It didn't disappoint; moments later, a sound like an elevator being called was heard. Then the very familiar sound of a hatch being opened – from the "trap door" they had in their laboratories – echoed and she now expected instinctively for something to open wide.

Half a minute later in total, in front of her stood two relatively small doors for an entrance, coated with the same stone as the rest of the wall, only they were four inches thick of pure metal. She could only watch in awe as an empty, totally unfurnished room revealed itself taking up about 7x5 square metres. It had stairs that led up somewhere, meaning there was more than just one hidden room at the lower levels, while it also had some sort of…she couldn't make out, the flame was too small.

She looked up at the floating burning sphere and lightly blew it towards the room; the flame followed the path of her dispensed breath and entered the room. He smirked at that, but she was too caught up in her new toy to notice him. He might even have thought it was a smart thing to do, but now she'd never know. Thus, oblivious as she remained, she walked into the dark room.

Her nose scrunched up from the terrible smell of mould and closeness. Thankfully no scent of horrible decay and rotting permeated the air thus nothing dead was in there. That was fortunate; that was a good sign she deemed that she was the first living human being that entered the place, apart from the usual suspects. She hoped anyway. "Can I climb the stairs later?"

"Do whatever you want."

The proximity revealed from the answer made her jump; he was too close! _Don't be so edgy, Francesca_, she mentally reprimanded herself! "Um, will you come with me or can I make the flame into a torch to take…_with me_?" While she spoke the volume kept going down but the last two words were said so low, he barely heard them.

"I'll come."

But he had to admit, he was surprised with what she proposed; no one thought of doing that before in his presence. He saw her nod timidly – apparently numb, thinking he might still lock her up down here, but interested enough to venture into the great unknown – and tread on the dusted floors. Apart from the thick sheet of said dust, there was also some sort of grime on the stones that made her shoes slippery. She had to reach out to him twice and the third time Xanxus actually grabbed her hand and twisted it enough to get the message across: stop being careless. Thus, she walked slower and more cautiously. Of course then he started shoving her to move faster, but she started complaining so he stopped – she found if he couldn't stand one thing more than not getting his way, that was nagging –.

When she reached that odd part at the far end of the room she couldn't see when she first entered, she saw that it was nothing else than an emergency exit. Cool, there was an emergency exit. Only…how thick could this emergency door be if it was carved from the wall? It was big and out of stone like the rest of the room but maybe it was just like the entrance to this room where it was metal coated with stones. Still, all that separated from the wall was an outline. And there was no handle or knob…! She went even closer and discerned a little smudge on the wall next to the "door", similar to the button that revealed this room to her.

So she-

"Don't;" he caught her hand to prevent her completely "we don't want it opened yet."

So she was right in thinking this was indeed an emergency exit. "Does it lead to the back side of the house?"

"Through a tunnel, it ends far outside the house."

"An escape route."

His silent nod was the verification of her tardy observation. She moved her head once to show she was in tune with him and turned to the left – the wall she was facing was at the far end of the room – where the set of stairs was that led to an upper level. The staircase was visible and easily accessible; also, it was small. Only two flights of stairs, no more than twelve each: one started from the ground to be raised to reach the wall and ended at a landing next to it; then the stairs continued, like an extension of the wall, where they abutted on the upper floor.

And she could see all that from down there.

Yet, it was about time her curiosity took the better of her; she started ascending, this once not so slowly yet she didn't trip. She'd gotten used to the surface by now so she was able to adjust her footing after the first many stumbles. Proud with herself over her little achievement, she only stopped to allow her eyes to adjust to the light on the landing. The fire was with her but this was an entirely new place they were gazing up at and there was not a single ray of light in there. It took her some seconds to get used to it and only then did she continue climbing the small set of stairs.

When she reached the other room though, she was left stricken. Her mouth hang a little if she had to be honest and her heart stopped for just a moment—she really wasn't taking surprises well, _am I_, she thought bitterly? She had walked into a different world, compared to the absolutely bare room downstairs. This one was fully equipped: it was like a surgeon's room with the operating table right there, instruments, basins for washing and sets of clothes sealed into probably airtight bags. Sterilizing equipment could also be seen and at the farthest side of the room – which wasn't but five metres away in total – where there was some sort of sofa, like a waiting room.

What in earth was this place, apart from the painfully obvious? Did they use it for personal experiments? Or maybe it was all just a big hide out in case of emergencies? First here to be operated on if anyone had anything serious and then get the hell out of dodge! This idea seemed more fitting to her, so she adopted it. And while she was examining all the medical equipment down there, she failed to look around her. The expensive instruments and their clean silver despite being down there for so long, made her wonder both in thought and in amazement. Everything was so carefully placed side by side, according to use or size. Whoever arranged this little baby was a genius! Her aunt would praise them again and again. She'd probably do the same!

When she finished gawking at them, only then did she look around her. Completely thrown aback was she when she found out there was an identical flat of stairs in this room like in the previous which again led one level higher. In fact, it was a mere extension of the ones below but as she was so gobsmacked from this room, she absolutely missed them when she first entered.

"More stairs," she noticed aloud; Xanxus took it as his cue and promptly urged her towards that direction. _Oh right, Xanxus_, _he's still here_. She'd forgotten about him…but he quickly led her, this once to the next room where she saw something she did not expect: an already illuminated room—dimly so, but there was something that generated light. What was it? It was something so familiar she missed it, for she didn't register something like that could be down there: a refrigerator; a huge, double-doors, tall refrigerator. When she realised she held back a chuckle. When she noticed the oven, the microwave oven, the freezer and an absorber placed on top of the oven, she couldn't help the huge smile that took over.

"I get it; this is a safe house. And that last floor down there is for sleeping, correct? Where you can throw your sleeping bags and just relax…but, isn't it kind of dangerous when all you need to do to open it is pushing a little button that looks like a smudge?"

"When the button is pushed once, it cannot be pushed a second time; you can only escape from the inside."

"Oh" she said lamely "that is actually very smart. Who designed this place?"

"Someone very lucky to still be alive; but we made sure he wouldn't tell of this place to anyone." And that was all he was willing to say about it.

"Do you come down here often to inspect?"

"…" he seemed not too willing to answer but finally spoke: "not too often."

"The surgical instruments looked very-."

"We made sure they didn't rust. There is one more floor. It has an arsenal. I suppose you don't want to see that in detail so we'll go upstairs and head for the exit immediately."

She nodded in agreement; she had no desire to look upon guns at the moment. She didn't mind them but they brought back memories she didn't really want remembered—like her being at gun point, killing those people in Ottabio's mansion…the only fond memory was her shooting Michaela. Thus, she didn't mind cutting her visit to the armoury short. She did notice there were more than just guns—ammo, vests and other things were there, too but that was all she could get from the fleeting glimpse she gave them.

But there, at the top "floor" of the "safe room" was the exit, not counting the emergency route. It was the same small doors that opened three levels down; covered with bricks from either side still all she could see was an outline. But, he preceded her this once and reached out at the wall, one centimetre from where the outline ended exactly. He pushed at seemingly nothing, but the same sound of doors opening was heard and the entrance was revealed.

"You must remember where it is on the other side—the button. Then you push it and the doors open from the inside."

That was a very good system. In all her life she hadn't seen something similar; the trap door at the house she lived with her aunt operated in a very different way with no way outs. If they caught you down there, they killed you, or captured you. You couldn't escape. But here…this was genius at work. Still, the true reason he got her down there eluded her. Was he trying to trap her down here? That was impossible—he just showed her how to get out. Then what was his reason?

"This is where we will restrain Nono for the twenty four hours we need until we have placed the substitute in his stead and have brought the Gola Mosca here in secrecy. You will be the one in charge of him. Your duty is sedating him, keeping him still and out in general no matter how you may do that. I've shown you the possible exits if something should happen while down here.

I'm told you know how to drive so be aware there is a vehicle well hidden in close proximity to the exit of the emergency route. So long as you have Nono out cold and enough meds to keep him that way for days then you are very good to go wherever you want. The car is ordinary silver Alfa Romeo GT."

"OK…as you wish. Shall I presume that the same sedative will be used in capturing him?"

"Yes; also, you'll be visiting him with your results from your fancy research in three days from now. Prepare yourself. And stop crying—he sees you red or bloated, he knows something is very wrong."

She nodded again, this once a little resolved. It was nice she felt…needed, despite all that happened. She was essential to the plan and seeing him showing her all these she knew exactly what kind of power she had in this project—as if he was showing her a weakness. She appreciated it. She gave a faint but honest smile…but he missed it as he was already ascending the stairs to leave this dark place. So much for her resolve.

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><p><strong>AN**: And that was the end...Please review~!


	18. Explosions, blood and drugs

**A/N**: I promised it'd be before August! And I made it just in time... sorry about the long absense it has been a very unproductive year for me. So here, finally getting over the whole Nono problem...hope you enjoy. Don't hate me too much.

Oh, I don't know KHR, only the OCs and the plots pertinent to them.

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><p>. .<p>

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It was a very sunny day; had it rained, it would've given that feeling of foreboding, or the feeling that you are a part of a movie and the weather only reflects what's inside you: everything cold from hardship and wet by tears. But the day they chose to kidnap Nono was one of the best days yet. The sun was shining, the wind had abated and nothing could give a warning to what would happen in the next few hours.

It was in the wee hours of the morning she called the old man—well, his office anyway. No one answered though, so she tried again and this once was successful. She found one of his guardian on the line; she'd told him thrilled she made an amazing discovery, one that Nono has been waiting for! Though her voice was shaky and her heart beat was too loud for her liking, maybe that shakiness was what made it believable and they didn't suspect more than normal.

Thus, a meeting was set up for the two of them – the boss and the scientist – immediately. She felt relieved things worked out this far, though this was where the hard part started. She would have to be convincing _in person_, to _Nono_. That would be terrifying. The more she thought about it, the more her heart increased its speed. She was nervous enough for her hands to start shaking again.

And there she thought she outgrew that. Surprisingly, amongst each and every one of them, it was Levi who got her to feel better: he said some silly things about his circumstances with the boss, he complimented her looks, comparing her with every woman that ever walked in here and still winning, he made her take her mind of things. And she'd truly appreciated that.

"You look very professional Francesca," complimented the man in the end for a final time and she smiled in gratefulness. "Are those glasses just for show?"

"Oh no, I have myopia. But not too much; I just thought I would look more…" she looked around as if about to make a shocking confession "clever this way."

He laughed and she smiled wider in return. "You do! The boss will be pleased by your efforts. You are a good underling."

Coming from Levi, she thought that was a true honour. "Thank you; I needed that." And then she did the last thing she herself expected: she hugged him. She felt soothed and appreciated by his words and she never thought she could feel that way again but there she was. Sometimes, help comes from the most unusual places.

"F-Francesca…what are you doing…?"

She could _hear_ his blush, but most importantly his misconception. She took a step back as if electricity had struck her. "I'm just hugging you; that's all. Don't read more into it…!"

"Oh…Okay."

Damn, she felt like a dick. "But you can escort me to Nono if you want."

"Ah, no, that's Squalo's duty for today; you see Mammon and I will be the surprises."

"The 'surprises'; why does that sound horrible to me?"

"It shouldn't; it's all part of the plan."

And as per planned, Squalo took her from their mansion and escorted her to Nono's which of course they had been watching for days; as per planned, they left her there with her notes and her samples; as per planned, she met with Nono and went to a more isolated room to talk; as per planned, all hell broke loose just as she was about to be congratulated.

"My dear, dear child; you are bearer of most fortunate news! I had no idea you could make such progress in such a short time; your aunt taught you well. Was she close to the breakthrough, too or is this entirely on you?"

The old man was praising her; he was the only one who did, too. Yet she wouldn't help him, even if he knew not he should be helped. The sole human being who was nice to her, she would hurt and keep captive.

She gave a small, prudish smile to the boss of the familia and tried not to be too awkward. "Ah, this is me; certainly. Well, my aunt taught me, so I guess she had a big part in it but I thought of this on my own." She gave another fleeting smile. "I am a good student," she added as an afterthought and the old man laughed.

"Indeed, and not too shy about it either. But, you earned your dues and congratulations I believe are in order. So-!"

Just as he extended his right hand, a distant blast froze him in place!

His eyes widened and he looked behind him, at the direction the sound came from. Then he retracted his hand and turned his whole body to the same direction as his eyes, standing up from his chair. Eyes narrowed now and full of alarm, he went slowly to the door he came in through, his ring and flame activated. He stood to eavesdrop; he looked to where he was sitting a moment ago, to ensure Francesca's safety…but she wasn't there. Where was she? His eyes searched her for mere seconds before finding her to the table at the far end of the room.

_When did she get there_, the question plagued his mind? But when he saw her grabbing the wooden big table _and turning it over while flinging it to the ground_, he finally realised what was going on: an ambush. He turned his head back to the entrance way, feeling the heat coming. He turned about to run for cover but he was too old and it was too late: the flames of wrath blasted the double door open!

The explosion was too powerful: it blew a whole on the wall, too, chunks of debris flying everywhere! Dislodged pieces took Nono with them, throwing him hard against the wall; the blast was powerful enough to knock him out, but it didn't. Yet, as he crashed on the other side or the room with nothing but his own startled flame to protect him, he was severely weakened.

He winced; he tried to gather his wits and pick himself up from the floor. As he tried to get up, his knees shook. He smothered a cry of agony when he felt – and later saw – a wooden fragment jutting out from his back, close to his spine. That was both dangerous and painful.

He looked straight ahead of him, through the smoke and the mess; his son's figure started forming. When his face was visible, the anger was nearly palatable. But he looked as if he couldn't decide between looking furious, his signature glare, or looking satisfied at the turn of events. He apparently thought changing through the two emotions would be more fitting, so he did that.

Nono couldn't stand or else he risked paralysis, so he only looked up at his son. His throat was dry, but he had to ask: "Why now…?"

A snort and a derisive small laugh later, he shrugged. "Why _not _now?"

"But I-…"

He didn't get to finish. A jab at the arm and he turned to his left, overly surprised. He saw Francesca right there, on her knees, looking at him worriedly and then looked at the limb in question. A needle was sticking out from his triceps. He suddenly felt exhausted; he couldn't stand, but he didn't stop staring at her…even if, admittedly, his vision was blurry. "Francesca?"

"Sneaky one, isn't she? Sticking needles when you least expect it. I bet you didn't even think _she_'d be the one to take you down and not me. Well, I guess now you do."

All the while his son spoke he heard his voice coming from somewhere far away. He wobbled. His vision swam and his equilibrium was devastated; he landed face-first into the ground. He was still conscious when Francesca yelped and said something about removing the piece of wood on his back, but the last thing he remembered was the overwhelming sensation of pain and sleep hitting him full force. The metallic scent of blood followed, as he lost his last sense to the darkness…

"This is Ladybug" she alerted the rest through their communicator "Number is subdued. How are the rest?"

"This is Queen Elizabeth; all right from my part~!"

"Philip agrees; the guards will be incapable of walking for the next three days at least, shi shi..."

"Beelzebub here; I successfully managed to halt all forms of entrance to the Guardians; they don't even know what's going on."

"Atlantian here; I managed to intercept all of my charges."

"J…Jaws reporting; everything is under control."

Francesca looked up at her boss, Xanxus; then her eyes travelled to the old battered man on the floor of his own house. She was pleading. He nodded once. "Ladybug again; I'm giving Number first aid and in exactly two minutes we are good to go."

She had no meds or anything with her, she only managed to bring some painkillers, so she had to improvise: she looked around for some bottles of alcohol which weren't broken and spotted some. She needed something with a high concentration…and she found it: a bottle of absinthe! It read 87% concentration; that was good enough. She grabbed that and another one, a martini, which she threw to her boss. The other, she kept next to her. She rolled up her sleeves, then grabbed a piece of the old man's and ripped it off! She had to use something to stop the bleeding that would come, and her bare hands seemed too poor a solution.

She knew the drug she gave him was so potent the pain would never jolt him awake, so she didn't bother with a painkiller. She tried to grab the wood but it would leave her with splinters if she didn't cover both hands so she ripped one more sleeve off. Then she grabbed it firmly. It took her a moment or so to be certain; she felt like defusing a bomb: one wrong move and someone could lose many things. Not that it mattered much once inside the Gola Mosca…

She loosened her grip for a moment but then tightened it again; now or never. She pulled it out with all her strength…! Some blood spurted out and she poured the absinthe on the wound for some disinfecting. Also, it gave her time to see no major pieces of wood remained inside it; when she was satisfied, she pushed down to stop further bleeding…only to realise she had to somehow tie it _on_ the man! "Can you give me him shoelaces," she asked in a slight panic, always keeping her mind on the time?

"Do it yourself scum!"

She cursed herself inwardly for thinking otherwise and tried to make do with what she had: she took off her shoe and actually pushed down at his wound with her foot. It was risky for she used more force with her leg, but it was a risk she was willing to take. So she pushed down and with her hands she did what she'd asked Xanxus to do; half a minute later, she had tied the two together and then both around his waist. When she secured nothing would go too loose and fall off she gave a double thumbs up to her boss.

He glared but did as he was supposed to: took the man and threw him over his shoulder while taking a swig from the martini. She shot up looking satisfied. "King of the Jungle and Ladybug are ready to go; everyone, follow the escape route as planned."

"I really hate these codenames," Jaws was heard on the earpiece, while they could hear him running away; Lussuria had come up with them but honestly, she thought they were brilliant, especially his and Xanxus's.

"Are you stupid? We have to go through the window," he reminded her less than kindly even though she never forgot; but he did her the favour of going through it first. It had shattered from the explosion but some – sharp and threatening – glass still remained at the frame of the window. But he kicked it off and then walked over it. She followed, very careful to step where he did and jumped out!

"AAAH!" she forgot she was on the first floor…the fall would not be pretty. And when she saw it mid-air, she panicked; she twisted and fell on the grass on her arm!

"Ugh," she breathed and when she heard a "crack" she knew she must have broken it. then the searing pain came and she knew it was truly broken. _Fuck, fuck, fuck_, she chanted mentally and tried to get up, but with her good hand useless and hurting, it would be a little tricky. Also, she thought the shoulder was dislocated. She rolled in a squatting position, put all of her strength in her legs and pushed up. Seeing her, Xanxus grabbed her from the collar of her shirt and pulled her up at the same time.

"Worthless," snubbed the testy man and pushed her forward; she lost her footing a little but then walked in that direction, three steps behind him…he had really tall legs.

But interference came from the earpiece soon and they heard Squalo shouting—it was the "charge" cry, meaning he had encountered resistance and he was currently deployed. Xanxus's ears twitched. Not a moment later, they heard "Philip" saying he was on his way to help him, as well as the Queen; "Beelzebub" though found the problem: "It's the mist guardian; he alone broke my illusion and made it out. I just found out because he used his own illusions to trick me. I'm heading there as I speak."

"Very well; we'll be-!"

Xanxus interrupted her. "We'll nothing," he stated and kept walking to the car they had ready.

He didn't say it, but she knew he trusted them too much not to think they need help, instead of just ignoring them right out now he had Nono in his hands; they're more than capable of taking care of themselves anyway…right? That's what she chose to believe and ran after her boss anyway.

He dumped the old man's body in the back seats of a reasonably spaced Alfa Romeo and jumped in the driver's seat. She followed suit, scurrying to make it in time. When she opened the door on her second try – she first reached with her other hand – she just managed to climb inside before he hit on the gas. Till they leave the range of their earpieces, they could hear the sounds of battle slowly dying out…when they were out of range for good, there was nothing.

He ripped it out of his ear immediately and threw it on top of his father; she decided to do the same without the whole flinging it carelessly thing. She shook her head. "Make sure he's ready to be wired till tomorrow this hour. The moment we get back you start your tests."

"Yes boss."

"You'll be putting him into the Mosca yourself. Find a way to learn the mechanics."

"…so long as I have a computer or a manual down there, I'm good to go."

"You'll be given one; the Mosca will be brought to you, too."

"Yes sir."

Content of her obedience and her tone, he continued driving back to their estate. Just before they reached it, he received a phone call from Squalo, saying all was well; they managed to stop the guardians and fool them adequately. "So the switch was a success?"

"Yes; they suspected, but we managed to make it believable," Squalo's booming voice was heard on the speaker but Mammon interjected: "I managed, he means."

The boss didn't need to hear anything else; he nodded and she hanged up the phone. He was being extra dismissive today, she noticed, but she thought it only a natural reaction to finally dealing with his father. Even if "dealing" was actually an exaggeration, at least there was an amount of confrontation involved. That would have to do, she supposed. When he parked, she realised this was the spot he said an Alfa Romeo something would be waiting for her when they were in the dungeons.

Huh…that was potentially dangerous for her if she had to escape.

"You'll go to the house through the tunnel," he ordered; it made her jump. At the same time, he stepped on something that activated a machine on the ground and revealed a small opening which appeared to lead underground. "Take him with you."

He literally dumped his father's motionless body at her feet. "You'll have to force the rest of the door open."

"Right; it was made to be accessible from the inside…"

But her musings were missed by Xanxus who was already walking away. "Oh boy." now she had to pry open something with a broken hand. That would have been hell on earth, if she couldn't push it open with her legs. She approached it carefully then, after probing with her foot the old man to make sure he was still out. She assured he was unconscious and then stepped carefully on what she thought was the rest of the "door" that led underground.

She didn't expect it to give way so easily though! She found herself falling into the whole…she hit her butt on the concrete path, smeared with dirt to look like the surrounding area. She rubbed the spot, pained and annoyed; then stood up to the best of her effort, without her right hand making contact with the ground.

She huffed. Turning to look at Nono, she grumbled something about over-demanding bosses and ridiculous old men. She blew her fringe away and grabbed the Vongola boss with her good hand. She put her arm around and across his chest diagonally. She dragged him to her level, but used her leg to make sure he didn't hurt his back anymore. She knew this was bad, and she had to keep him in a certain position but she was in too much pain to get out and then in again. She then realised she had to perform the arduous task of getting the old man to the underground safe-house all by herself…

_Oh damn; that'll be difficult._

She managed though, and she got him in the last, lowest floor of said safe-house, where the tunnel had led her. In fact, it had led _directly_ inside it, she knew she only needed a light to direct herself in the room; she left the man on the ground carefully and then fumbled blindly in the dark to find something—anything to light her way. She found a box of matches. Well sure, that's helpful; but if there's a lab in there, higher level or not, then there must be power in which case there must be a switch somewhere around! She started panicking now; what if she didn't find the switch? What if it were hidden just like the button to open it? If she had to search and consider every god damn stain around her she'd flip! She didn't have enough matches and Nono's wound could get too serious if she didn't do something fast!

Panic attacking her at full force, she couldn't even get the matches out of the box properly—she couldn't open it at first and then the damn things just wouldn't light! The first one broke from her panic-induced forcefulness and the second fell to the ground; the third followed the same fate and she exclaimed "fuck,", trying not to let the whole box slip from her hands, too!

She stopped when she realised just how silly she must have acted …she was manic.

She shook her head disappointed in herself and took a long calming breath. She then remembered her right hand was unusable and that was why she kept failing. She knelt to the ground; there, where her immediate environment was at arm's reach – if she dropped something she could find it, were she careful enough – she took a match out of the box and then put the box in her mouth. Times like these, one had to improvise.

She made the characteristic motion and the friction set the match alight; bingo! Still technically biting the match box she moved to the wall carefully and peered at it. Some seconds later, she found it: there was a switch after all! She reached it just as the match burnt all the way and made her drop it. _That thing stung_, she realised as she sucked on it and saw the small burn almost left a blister there. Hastily then, she ran to the old man; she took his pulse and waited. Great, he was still alive and as well as he could be. She made sure the sedatives hadn't somehow worn off and then ran as fast as she could to the upper floor to grab the medicine! She had no way to carry him up there but she could bring everything down with her.

She quickly found what she was looking for – the switch was, apparently, universal and all levels shone with a faint light – just as she had requested it and some more: bandages, pure alcohol, painkillers and at the last minute she grabbed something akin to a splinter. If she had as much work as they pointed out in only a 24-hours window, she had to work fast. And with one hand, she had to ignore her own pain and take some painkillers for herself.

But her first concern was Nono's back; it could take a turn for the worse…putting those thoughts aside, clutching the bag with the medicine close to her chest, she reached the old man breathless.

. .

.

Four hours later, she was alerted to someone trying to enter the hide out…she went perfectly still. She remembered what her boss had told her: grab Nono and bolt! She tried to do so; she put an arm around his chest, went to the escape route – which had to be reopened – and waited to see what happens. But as she was about to ran for good, she heard a "VOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOI" loud and clear. She let a breath she didn't know she was holding and went to the door. It opened to reveal a grumpy, yet perfectly healthy Squalo.

"Thank God you're all-"

"I brought you the manual you asked about the Mosca;" he dumped a very heavy modern-looking book in her arms, causing her to lose her balance "and Lussuria said you might need these, so here." He placed an equally big and heavy box on top of it and then was when she dropped everything.

He snorted an aggravated "tch" as she fumbled when picking them up and turned about; he left her to her own devices. "Thank you," she cried out as he retreated. Yet she couldn't make out what they were—it was a simple brown carton box with something inside. When she opened it…there were brownies! "Aw, they're chocolate, it's my favourite! I must thank him once I get out."

She ate while reading the manual; she then started working. They were delicious and gooey, just as she liked them; she savoured every bite and she loved them! Feeling better at the thought someone cared about her, she took one and started eating, while reading the newly-acquired manual. It was tricky, and very difficult to understand, even if it was fifty pages long. It had some very unforgiving concepts in it that she wasn't even familiar with, as their whole research was based around something almost opposite.

Still, she read it once; the second time, she helped herself to a second brownie. When she revised it the third time, she ate another one. In the end, she'd eaten four brownies and associated different pages with bites and dough. That's how she finally managed to memorise the theory behind the application. And when they came for her, in the middle of the night, she had the ability to do what was asked of her. Well, she had the knowledge, not the ability per se, as her hand killed her so she made the people who brought the Mosca do all the technical stuff. Of course, when it came to the wires and the positioning, she was the one who did it but all the carrying and opening the Mosca and everything was done by others.

In the end, when the boss came to take the Mosca away – after the sun rose –, she was exhausted, too doped from the many painkillers she'd consumed, but very pleased with herself. She'd done exactly what Xanxus ordered her to do and then some; she was relieved. That was when she was allowed to return to her room. She hurried to her own lab, trying the best fix to her hand. It proved very difficult because her eyes kept closing all by themselves—she was too tired. So she bathed herself and changed clothes for better results; she worked on it a little longer and then went to her bed.

It was noon when she managed to close her eyes and go to sleep.

"VOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOI! What are you doing sleeping? Get up; you have a report to give to the boss!"

She didn't even _move_ to his screaming. _Heh, they were right, all of them_, those who came to tell him she wouldn't even stir—maybe he was wrong to beat them up for not succeeding waking her up. He normally wouldn't care, but thinking his own boss would beat him up if she didn't wake, he started sympathising. He sighed; this required actual effort. He went to her, letting go of the doorknob reluctantly. Observing her face and how she barely twitched, she was sound asleep.

"Wake up crazy bitch; wake up! It'll be your head on a platter if you don't! **And** mine," he screamed in her ear, but she still wouldn't even flick her eyelids! And the boss was getting impatient…he sighed again. He put his boot on her back. "Wake up!"

His loud urge was accompanied by a strong kick. She rolled a little and stopped on her back just at the edge of the bed, but nothing else happened. She was still…asleep? What the hell did Lussuria give her with those brownies? Maybe it put her in a coma, whatever it was.

Shaking his head, he looked around the room; he wanted something to douse her with. He squinted; was that a whole jug of water on her desk? He could use that. He took it in his hands, reaching there with two long strides and steadied it. He sniffed it first; it smelt weird but he didn't care for it was cold enough. He went directly above her and emptied it all on her.

But then something amazing happened, just like magic: the water turned into fire! The moment it touched the woman, even the liquid that wasn't yet spilled caught the flame and suddenly he was holding a jug of fire! "Oh my fucking God," he shouted panicked and threw the jug down on the bed! "Water, water, I need water! And you wake up what's wrong with you? You're burning!"

He kept shouting and scrambling around to find something to put it out. "Get up you crazy woman, get up!" He found another pitcher and this didn't smell at all—finally water! He grabbed it and poured it on the fire…but it only became bigger! "What the hell? D'you discover how to make Greek fire? Wake up you insane pyromaniac! _Why would she even have these shits in her room anyway_?"

As she was seeing the most lucid dream of her life, suddenly she felt hot; that was odd though since she was feeling cold when she went to sleep. And this strong scent of burned thread permeated the air in her dream and then all the pretty fields started burning…! What the hell was going on in her dream? Oh she wanted to wake up—there goes her carefree picnic.

Ultimately, she started opening her eyes…only to find herself in an even crazier situation: it wasn't the fields or the food on fire, it was her; and her blanket! "GYAAAAAH!" she jumped out of the bed panic-stricken and threw the blanket off of her.

"Squalo, I'm burning, I'm fucking burning!" She had no time to wonder why he was there—the fire had transferred to her clothes and her hair; she was turning around and thrashing "put me out, put me out!"

Her breath started to catch; she was feeling unable to breathe, even if the fire wasn't asphyxiating yet. She could see nothing but the flames; and that horrible smell of burnt clothes and hair would never go away.

"Take your clothes off and roll on your back! Try to quench it! I'll get the water—where the fuck is the water in this room anyway?"

"It's on the bed side table—ugh, it burns; hurry it won't go down!"

The clothes were cast aside as fast as she could, but her hands were trembling and the one wasn't even usable! But that hadn't registered as she grabbed with both hands, trying to free herself from the pyre. Her heart pounded in her chest and she could hear it in her head; she kept fumbling with the hemline. Then she fell and started rolling around. "My hair, my **skin**; it burns so much! _**Do**_ something!"

He looked at her, stopped looking for the missing water—the only thing still burning on her was her hair. He thought fast: he took something he found on the floor and wrapped his good hand in it, went to her and took his sword immediately out; with his wrapped hand, he grabbed her burning hair. She was so shocked she tried to resist him first, but she calmed a little when she felt her head falling; with one fell strike, he'd cut it off!

He threw the thing he wrapped his hand away with her hair; "you stopped burning, get up!" They both started for the exit; exasperated, as she's almost paralyzed out of fear, he dragged her with him. "And why isn't the fire alarm working," he bit out exasperated!

Like waking from a trance, she exclaimed: "the fire alarm!" Releasing herself, she ran towards the big fire, but took a left turn and headed for the east wall; she pushed some buttons with trembling but certain fingers and finally, it started raining.

Slowly but steadily, the flames waned; they stood there, steadily being drenched to the bone and watched as the three other fires were extinguished. "You'd fucking disabled it you fucking bitch? Why the fuck you'd do that for?"

Numbly, she looked at him. "…I experimented before going to bed sometimes and it gave off a lot of smoke…I didn't want to activate it for no reason."

Now that the "oh hell I caught on fire" thing was settled, she could feel her broken hand…the pain was killing her. It was worse than that actually, it was torturing her. She gritted her teeth to try manage it, along with her guilt.

"What about when there is a reason?" His aggressiveness was only worse; she jumped before turning away.

She supported her right, broken hand with her left when she could realise the slink was gone. She was careful enough not to squeeze it more. "I'm sorry, I never thought I'd catch fire…how did it happen anyway?"

Now it was his turn to look away; still furious but now a little defensive, he crossed his arms and kept looking at the fires dying out. "I poured you a pitcher to wake you; it turns out it wasn't water. And then I tried to put you out but the other one just made it worse. Just what are you keeping in your room anyway?"

"They were the ones on the desk…right?" He nodded. "It was methanol and pure alcohol. Normally nothing would have happened, but the covers had residue of-."

His eyes grew wide; as if she didn't worth the effort though, he shook his head. "Psychotic bitch," he bit out, as if it were a common known fact "the boss wants your report. Go, after you…clean and dry yourself. Anyway, apart from the report, you need to give him the medicine. We gave them yesterday but … you had them all catalogued so bizarrely we weren't even sure we gave them right."

"What are you talking about? I had prepared a special pouch for you on top of the desk in my lab; they had names like "number one" "number two" etc…" he looked at her oddly. "You didn't even _look_? Why didn't you ask me when you came down?"

He saw no reason to give her an answer; he shrugged. "Be ready in ten and go to the boss," said he, then turned around and left.

When he was out of earshot, she finally started complaining mixed with her tears. What had just happened was surreal. And how long was she asleep anyway? Her system was pumping adrenaline now so she couldn't determine but she knew she'd be sleepy in an hour again. Frustrated with what she had had to clean up, more than anything else, she did as he told her: got dressed, dried her hair with the blow dryer – which was torture to her skin as some of the flames had licked her hands – and went to Xanxus.

She made sure to wear something long-sleeved; she knew there was no chance she could mend her hand now, so she hastily replaced the splinter-like thing and left. But the pain…! She was almost certain she'd need surgery to put it right now. She grabbed a couple of painkillers, and popped one as she went to Xanxus; if he abused her, at least she'd feel less of it.

. .

.

"The fuck happened to you? They said you were sleeping, not cooking."

"I was…you see, I…I was late because I tried to—no, they tried…um, but-then-something-went-wrong-when-Squalo-tried-to -wake-me, but…it's-no-big-deal, we-managed, it's-alright-I'm-fine, _not_ hurt, nope, not-at-all."

There was a pause. "Report; and you better make more sense than just now."

She sighed relieved he didn't press and gave her a subject she could be honest about; she had this idea stuck in her head that she shouldn't say what happened, though she knew not why. She cleared her throat. "…I successfully sedated, treated and hooked Nono to the Mosca; everything went smoothly. When they came to take him, he was set. I injured my hand while escaping though and I still haven't had a chance to fix that. After I'm finished with your medicine, I shall go back to mending it."

He nodded in agreement; she nodded and approached. She came to stand in front of him, looking to her tray to sort the serums out and hand them over. She felt his eyes glued on her, making her hands tremble; but he always did that and she supposedly gotten used to it so why the nervousness? Just thinking about things made her shake. What the hell?

"They gave me _this one_ last, yesterday," he commented out of the blue.

If she didn't know better, she'd say he sounded concerned. But that didn't register immediately, with her own problems floating in her mind; only after she casually said "…they were mistaken; you have two more to go," did she realise what had just happened.

She waited for a moment to let what she herself had said sink in. "Um…it isn't that bad though. The last ones have not such a strict order because they're just err, like that."

His face was getting darker and darker and she started speaking faster and faster. "Um, I mean, they were supposed to take the pouch on my lab counter, but they didn't see it, they must have missed it, so they went to the cabinet in the far left side and they were catalogued differently because they were for me so it's normal but it's ok, it's unimportant."

He glared. "I swear! It's not that big of a deal anyway, an honest mistake."

"They also gave me the one you're holding _third_ to last."

Her face paled. "I-…I'll fix it. Err, I mean, since you're still alive it'll be fixed on its own; it's fine; it's minor."

"…" he stayed silent, but that 'since you're still alive' line finished him. He kept glaring and only after he scared her enough did he take the last two serums. He gulped them down audibly and proceeded to stare. "You cut your hair."

It was a statement that awaited an explanation. "I did…"

"Why?"

There was that innate need to lie; why? Maybe…she just wanted this one to keep it to herself. Something personal that will go away as if it never happened if she kept it silent enough. Just thinking about it scared her, so if she related it…she'd panic again. Besides, she didn't feel she wanted to share it with him; he'd mock her or something about it, he wouldn't make it any better.

"I took some drugs for the pain but took a little too much…and I thought it would be funny if my hair were shorter I guess. So I started cutting and cutting all over the place and before I knew it half of it was off. I didn't even see what I was cutting, it's so uneven. I'll go to a hairdresser tomorrow to make it right." She laughed awkwardly. But he didn't seem amused; "or call someone here." He threw her a pillow. "OK, I'll have Lussuria even it out!"

He threw her a half-empty bottle of tequila. "If you lie to me again, I'll fucking kill you."

"Wh-…?"

"Your hair isn't even but they are symmetrical. They were cut off all at once with a blade. Why did Squalo cut your hair?"

She stood there looking at him. _How did he figure it out so fast?_ She closed her mouth. "Alright, I admit; he came to wake me up but I was still high **and** having a nightmare so I started shouting how there was something on my hair. He tried to calm me but I wouldn't stop so…he cut it off to shut me up."

He threw her a goddamn fireball and she barely managed to dodge! Her whole insides twisted and turned and she was back to fifteen minutes ago, burning alive! The panic returned in a very different way than she thought and just that second thought made her hyperventilate.

He didn't seem fazed. "First you lie to me about why you look like you came out of an oven and then you lie about your fucking hair, even after I warned you! Do you _really_ wanna die?"

She felt her eyes water; as if her mental scarring wasn't enough, she had to deal with this, too now! "So what if I do, huh?" She gasped for breath, trying to control her heartbeat. "Look at me! I'm reduced to being abused day after day after day **and **held responsible for it, too! Do you _blame me_ if I **want** to? I do nothing but hurt people or getting hurt, nothing which I ever wanted! Maybe it is better off if I die!"

She started coughing in her panic, panicking even more: maybe there was still smoke in her lungs! She gasped for air as if the fire was still on her; if his primary weapon was the flame of wrath, she envied none who received it, now more than ever. Fire was a horrible way to die and she felt as if his fire had actually never missed. She would have clawed on her hands had she not her arm in a splinter.

"Liar;" he stated offhandedly "if you wanted to die, would you be fighting now? Would you do all those things you never wanted just to survive? Don't you hate people like me? Yet you obey me. You're worse than an animal; at least they are honest with themselves. All you do is lie—."

He chuckled. She wanted to burry herself alive.

"And here I thought you'd be less delusional than the others; you lie to me, you lie to yourself and you lie to your mother. Face it; you're the worst from all of us."

He spoke no more; her heavy breathing was the only thing that could be heard. But his question was never answered. "So how _did_ you cut your hair?"

"Squ-," she kept coughing "Squalo cut them off," wheezing and shaky she tried to balance herself "because they'd caught on fire—I'd caught…on fire by his mistake."

There was a small time lapse between that and his laughter. Asshole.

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><p><strong>AN<strong>: Leave a review please! They are much appreciated. And I promise not to take so long to update ever again. On this fic.


	19. Arrival and revival

**A/N**: Next chapter as promised! Good thing I had a lot of inspiration and this came earlier than I thought. It's huge, too. Hope it pleases you~By the way, can't stress this enough, thank you all lovely people who take the time to review and a big thanks to those who alert and favourite, too.

I do not own KHR and a huge thanks to my beta reader; either available or not, you're the best.

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><p>.<p>

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The events that followed weren't what she was expecting: when the time came for the "boss" – the imposter they planted – to choose his heir, he couldn't just point to Xanxus and say "him", because there was also…CEDEF. Of course, a parameter they hadn't thought of: the External Advisors of the Family, led by Iemistu Sawada, who wouldn't just roll over and take this. He was friendly with the boss in any case, and he must have realised that something weird was going on with him.

There was also…Reborn. That small, annoying infant, who of course wasn't really an infant just like Mammon, and also was the best marksman and assassin, he was causing problems. He just didn't want Xanxus in leadership and made it obvious in any kind of way: he nominated as an heir a child from Japan. A child, from japan; a nobody from the other side of the world—who would appoint him and why!? He was a fifteen year old who knew nothing of their world!

And when they learned he wasn't even nominated _now_, rather some months ago – compliments from Reborn again –, their house practically became a war zone! Xanxus would throw tantrums randomly, blowing things, walls up, and even shooting people who came to his room for menial tasks. Luckily, not more than two people were in danger, and they were both treated by the frightened scientist who was doing her best to keep people alive and her lab intact. The first one proved to be trickier than the second.

In light of these developments, sad but rapid in everyone's eyes, the boss decided to finally play all his cards: it was time to have the Nono imposter step up the game and nominate him as the new boss. After that, he was probably the new boss already! Who would dare stand up to him? That nobody from japan would be too scared to oppose him anyway.

And how did he know that? He found out of course! His own agents and various Varia members were dispatched, all for the sake of information gathering, but what gained him the most was a much unexpected source…a young man called Rokudo Mukuro. He was sixteen and they learnt he was part of an experiment. In fact, he was a flame user and had the attribute of mist. Illusions, much like their Mammon, only he couldn't possibly be nearly as good. They found out that Mukuro had fought with the boy, Tsuna, and lost. Also, Reborn made reports about him, claiming he hated the mafia; Xanxus felt safe to guess what he told them was true, but he had an angle. What sort of angle that was, he didn't know, but he could guess it wasn't in anyone's favour, but Mukuro's.

Day by day, as things progressed – the fake Nono had made his announcement, they were gathering up their forces – the boss's mood seemed to pick up. It only made everyone that much more nervous of course since even one little thing going wrong, he'd be worse than before. They said nothing though and kept smiling; Francesca even enjoyed her time off as he was too interested in nothing but his plan and his health—he'd have time for her only when she was supposed to make him better. After that, he cared nothing for her: he never mentioned her research again, he didn't bother her on her free time and when he realised she was going the extra mile for him, devising new, more effective ways for his recovery, he allowed her even to go outside for once. Just once.

All in all, things had started to look up.

But it didn't last; before long, he was informed that CEDEF and its representative, Iemitsu, had chosen to defy him: he was challenging Nono's authority, by insisting that he had a say on who'd be the next boss and never took the nomination of Tsuna, his son for that matter, off the table.

The person who delivered the news to him was Squalo; if anyone could survive his tantrum that would be him. So they sent him in and ran…! And they did well to do so, as the room almost exploded.

Ten minutes later, Squalo was on the threshold of the kitchen, where Francesca was getting the food to take to her boss – a fine bribe food was and a sedative for his temper –. "VOI," he said loud enough to make her jump; she barely saved the plate she was holding "when you're done with the boss you're coming with me. I want some of that medicine you always have ready. And maybe that salve for the burns."

She looked him over many times and noticed how parts of his attire were burnt here and there. She nodded immediately. "You want me to dress those for you? They look worse than usual."

"Only if I have the time; the boss ordered me to go after the guy who holds the rings. I found out where he is, so I don't want to waste any time, I'll be leaving immediately."

She stood there as he turned about and left; half her mind was to leave the tray of goods she'd just prepared for the boss behind and go help Squalo or take the food to the white-haired man instead. He _was_ beat up and in her eyes, he looked tired; or hungry; or maybe both. She made to leave the tray but her hands wouldn't respond. She hadn't the heart to just leave him alone…oh man, she would regret this! She squeezed the tray in her hands and followed after him.

"Wait," she was shouting but he faintly heard it. "Wait, I'm coming with you." He did hear her though, so he obliged. Seconds later, he saw her appearing at the end of the hallway, with the tray of those delicious foods in her hands. He felt his mouth watering. "If you're going now then I shouldn't waste any time; and we pass in front of my lab this way so…"

She shrugged as she justified herself, looking mighty pleased with her choice; it sounded like she made excuses anyway, so he guessed she did what she wanted on a whim and that's why she looked so satisfied. He didn't know if he should be happy or sorry for her.

They walked in silence for some time; but in that time, she couldn't miss the way he'd glance at the food and how he always seemed to keep an eye out for things that could trip her and remove them, in fear all the good food would be wasted. Nor could she disregard the constant up and down of his Adam's apple as he swallowed every time he looked at the tray. She smiled to herself.

"You want some," she finally offered, trying not to sound too smug?

"You crazy? This is the boss's; he'll kill me if he finds out I ate it," was what his words were saying, but his eyes were already devouring every last bit of meat or fry.

"Nah, he'll probably kill _me_, but either way: you'll be far away by then and I'll just cook some more. Come on, take a bite. Oh," she said suddenly and came to a halt "this is my lab; let's go." She showed inside with her head and her whole body followed suit. What with her hands being occupied, she pushed the switch with her nose.

"You have elbows, too you know," he commented; she paid no mind.

Instead, she put the tray on her counter, right next to where he was standing, and moved to her bookcase. It was big and embedded to the wall. "Eat now; you're leaving anyway. Think of it as a good luck gift."

Then, she stood there and did something to the side of the third shelf…which actually opened. The shelf of books actually opened to reveal a new shelf behind it, with nothing but vials and small jars, numbering twenty each, at least. She grabbed two couples of vials and a little jar – it was like a jar of marmalade, Squalo could even see the red…thing inside it, too – and then shut it again. He noticed, as he idly started eating, that she was very paranoid: she did the same to the forth shelf – equally full with books –, something he couldn't see from where he was standing, and it too opened to reveal another hidden shelf: this one had many little things that looked like tokens or real good luck charms to him.

But when she pulled two of them out, cut it in half with her teeth and threw it into a bowl on her counter, he figured they were probably raw materials. She made sure to crush them enough to look like dust, after she shut the shelf closed. Then, she poured something that looked like milk into it, stirred furiously and took a little glass thing that looked like salt dispenser and sprinkled it over her mixture. She stirred some more and poured all of it into many vials that just lay there. When she was finished, she put a stopper to them; she opened the shelf she first went to and put the four of the six vials there. She closed it again and handed him the last two with a proud look on her face.

"What the hell is this?" he took none of them, he just kept eating.

"This is a painkiller! Well, an unconventional painkiller; it's not a pill but it does the job better! It's my own personal substitute for the common aspirin, only stronger…oh, you don't happen to have any allergies, right?"

He raised an eyebrow suspiciously, as he finished the meal. "No…why?"

"I have ingredients in there that may cause an allergic reaction. Now," she saw he ate everything and smiled; she arranged the empty plates on one side and put all he'd requested into the empty side "shall we go? I'll patch you up while you pack."

He nodded and left for his room. True to her word, as Squalo prepared his bag, she would hover and try to ail his pain with her cream. It was a wonderful cream, the whole Varia unit had found out, as it soothed any and every burn it touched. It never left a scar behind, too. If it were a third-degree one, then it would take longer to heal – from a day to half a week –. She'd come up with it when she was trying to take care of her own burns, some months ago.

Now it was sort of a Varia key prop that anyone inhabiting this place must have. She even considered mass-producing it and Mammon was the first one to tell her to go for it. She didn't have enough money for that of course and he promised to help only if he got twenty per cent more than the percentage he'd originally invested with his sum. Which meant, for the first three years – were the income what he predicted – he'd get the eighty per cent of all profits. Thus, it was still debatable.

When she finished with Squalo, she wished him luck and took anything unneeded and headed back to the kitchen to leave all of the dirty dishes.

"Franny-chan, the boss wants his meal~!" That was Lussuria's voice. "Do you have it ready?"

Ah, judgement time. "There was a problem with the oven and I have to do it again from the beginning! Could you please tell him that?"

"Oh no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, _no_ sweetie; I am not telling him such a thing." He appeared right behind her out of nowhere, scaring her out of her skin! "My feminine wiles for some reason don't work on him, so I'll be in danger! Can't you go sweet Franny-chan~?"

"You've known him longer than I! And even if he does hit you, you have no risk of _dying_! 'Sides, who is going to cook for him?"

"Oh dear, I get your problem! Okay, mommy Lussuria will go-…"

But as he went to hug her, suddenly he stopped. His whole demeanour changed and he gave a little cough. "The plates are empty, I smell no food in the bin, Squ-chan just left…are you sure you want _me_ reporting to-?"

Getting the threat faster than she'd ever before she started laughing awkwardly. "What are you talking about? Why would I ask you to do something so dangerous, are you crazy? We don't want your feminine wiles in a crisis; I'll go right now, don't even think of putting yourself in that risk."

"Oh really? Oh, daughter is so sweet! Do you want me to maybe start the preparations for the new batch of-?"

"What? No, of course not. I don't want _to tire_ you. I'll start it now as I go and when I return it will be half done. I think. Alright. So, I'm starting now…and then I'll go. Bye-bye."

Content by her choice of action, Lussuria left her alone to do all she said. And thank god for that, too as he saw that the following day, she didn't eat anything at all and not by choice.

That was pretty much how things were set in motion for her: a borrowed lunch to a loyal man, creams and tantrums. She'd wanted to keep an eye out for Squalo but her tasks wouldn't let her. Nor the boss would, of course—no one was to know of his whereabouts for many reasons. But her taking care of the Gola Mosca – and Nono inside it – learning Japanese more intensively, learning more about those Japanese people who were in line for the "throne" and advancing her own research kept her busy.

She couldn't steal away a second for her favourite past time!

But none of those mattered much anymore, when Squalo returned to the Varia headquarters…empty handed. She had no idea about that and thankfully, the boss didn't even take it as badly as they all had thought he would—all but Squalo anyway. He said he was merely tossed a glass, a glass full of tequila, and that was it. He bore no markings or bruises and other than he faint scent of liquor there was nothing wrong with him. They supposed he was right and the boss…was in a good mood? That was odd. They shrugged it off and smiled for their good luck.

But then came the bad news, in Francesca's opinion, along with the good, from the mouth of the boss himself: "we are leaving for Japan" he'd said coming out from his room and he followed with a "lab-geek, inside." She did as she was told.

"Yes boss?"

"I want a full report on my status."

"…you're fine." He thought she was making fun of him; he reached for his glass again, but she raised her hands in a peace-making gesture. "Honestly, you are. Remember how when you fought with Ottabio you had the one-hour limit? Now it's gone. I made sure of it. And if you take the new medicine I made for you more often, then the effects of your own flames will become greater.

Sure, there are some minor issues to keep me occupied, but they're just that: minor. There's nothing hindering about your condition or incurable, other than the fact your scars can't go away no matter what. Sorry, I tried, but every time you use your flames of wrath…they just appear. I can't do anything about it—this is all I can supress it."

He eyed her for a moment or two. "What about the Mosca?"

"All is well in that front, too. Vitals are stable, breathing patterns look normal and the scan I did this morning said all major organs are intact. He is good to go and battle-ready."

He shook his head once, and then showed her the door of his bathroom. "I want a bath with those…oils of yours. Bring them."

"Yes boss," she immediately said and made to leave.

"And I want a massage, too."

That stopped her just as she was about to exit; she turned only her head around. "Um…I can't do it tonight because I have to catch up-"

"I won't have a guy giving me a back rub, it's disgusting!"

"Okay…" she was hesitant, but left immediately.

She considered. She really had no time for that! She wanted to prep the team and give them special little things she made just for them and maybe offer them some of her oils as well. They were therapeutic, they would do them good. Maybe if she called Silvana to do it, would do the trick; she'd come at the drop of a hat, too! And her car was really fast, so it wouldn't take her too long to get here. And with the promise of a wonderful lady-packed surprise, she was sure as hell Xanxus would have no problem waiting that extra fifteen minutes…!

Suddenly, she felt like someone slapped her; she took a step back and stopped. All she could think of was that amazingly beautiful woman with her feminine hands and her big breasts just rubbing herself against him, almost naked, as she massaged his shoulders and then jumping into the tub with him and—

CRASH!

"VOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOI! The hell is wrong with you? That was expensive decoration!"

"Huh?"

She looked at the source of the sound and saw a flabbergasted Squalo just giving her the evil eye, looking between her and something next to her. She looked to her left and saw…a mirror, broken into many pieces, all because of her fist, which of course was now bleeding. Wait, that crashing sound she heard was from her? She didn't even realise! She'd just blacked out thinking about that woman and Xanxus together and-ooh, it was happening again.

As if the pain in her hand only just registered, she pried it away very carefully. It shook. "Ah…"

"Are you insane? Why did you-?"

"It hurts…!" She complained, ignoring Squalo who was looking at her as if she was from another planet. "Please help me carry some stuff from my room, will you?"

"No! You carry it yourself! Why the hell did you punch the goddamn mirror so hard it broke, anyway?"

She started taking her "I'm gonna drown you in tears if you don't, so you have to help me" face and the silver-haired man, frightened, tried to take a few steps back. Only she'd already latched desperately onto his arm. He sighed. "Fine, insane broad, I'll help you. What do you want?"

Who would have thought in her jealousy she'd get so furious she'd start punching mirrors. And who would have thought she _could_ get so jealous! Well, last time she threw a knife… this was a bad habit to start developing. But no matter; she called someone to clean up the mess in the hall and left. When they reached her room, she went straight for her night stand; it was bigger than Squalo remembered it. Also, she'd removed the two drawers and put some of her own, just as she wanted them: instead of two spacey ones, she had four small. Each compartment had a different assortment of things: the one she opened, the third in row, it had bath oils. They were all in glass containers, no bigger than the bottles of alcohol they had in airplanes, stopped with a cork. They all had labels, too.

After she dressed her hand, she took out a bottle and put it aside. "Take what you think you need and I'll choose for the rest."

He didn't bother reading; he picked a random one. She shook her head as her hand rested on her face. She finally chose some for everyone and then gave them all to Squalo. "Please, don't forget which is which," she said for the umpteenth time. She'd made her selection verbally and had repeated it many times, all in favour of actually being heard by the swordsman who looked at the very least uninterested. "And when I'm finished with the boss's bath, I'll give you something more. But," she emphasised, her finger straight, just to get his attention "these are designed solely for you and your own purposes. Little gifts from your science department, if you like."

"He, that doesn't sound too bad…alright. We'll be waiting for you in the living room of wing four."

She nodded and went about her business; she didn't like it one bit that she had to _massage_ Xanxus, but apparently having someone else do it seemed all the more unattractive to her, as a solution. Though it really shouldn't, she'd promised herself that! Tch, a hell lot of good that did her. She tried to shake it away with her head and found herself in front of her destination. He was already in the bath, from the looks of it – the lights were off in the bedroom, and the only source of light was coming from the far room in the back – so she made her way there.

"Boss, I've arrived; are you in the tub?"

"No, why?"

He gave her such a scare, she dropped the oils and stood ramrod straight; in a rare show of his well-honed reflexes, he caught the bottles before it hits the floor. Twice surprised then, she remained like that, awaiting his response to her show of clumsiness. She should have known it would have been conceited as the smirk he was usually wearing had spread all over his face. "I know I make you all excited, but don't go so far to drop my oils," he smoothly said as he handed her the bottle and went wherever she was headed, too. She followed after him kind of numb and averted looking at him straight, in fear she'd stare.

"You didn't answer me," he finished as he dropped his towel and climbed into the steaming tub. She looked away instinctively, but…but then she looked. She couldn't help it…but with her luck, all she saw when she glanced was his abs. But she'd seen that already! She tried to ignore she had just actually thought that.

She blushed and attempted to speak in comprehensible language. "I um, I didn't know where you, um, I didn't mean to err, startle me-you, err, didn't mean to scare you. Wait, no, startle you. I didn't want to startle you."

"You wouldn't have," he deadpanned, obviously amused with how she was fumbling with her own words and hands; she couldn't get the bottle to open no matter how many times she tried.

Her blush only deepened as she realised how silly she must have looked, and fumbled even worse with her oils; why wouldn't it just open? She did everything properly…! Half-angry, half-mortified by the display of her behaviour, she huffed and made a face, finally not caring about proper procedure and just grabbing the goddamn cork and pulling it as hard as she could!

"Can I have that oil bath before the water gets cold?"

He didn't even sound impatient; she could hear his ever-growing smirk! "I'm half-way there, boss," she said as a bead of sweat appeared on her forehead yet all she could think was: _he could just reheat it if he got angry, but noooo, this is the time for him to be laughing at my expense, the asshole_.

She finally made the cork yield and happier than any person should be, for opening a damn small bottle, she poured some of its context inside—they were bath salts. She stirred it a little and waited; when she thought it was enough, she applied the oils from the other bottle on her hands and crept behind him to massage his back and shoulders. It never registered with her he was always watching her, so when she was an inch away from touching him, he spoke; she jumped again.

"Thought you didn't want to do this; why are you here? We **have** women in the Varia you know."

Just as she was about to touch him again, she froze; what did he just say? No, that was not the point; he just implied something ridiculous! She felt her hands shaking, but swallowed it down and started her ministrations. "I didn't—I, I mean, you'd…I had no idea we had female Varia members; all I've seen are men!"

"Now you know," he said absent-mindedly, but he didn't sound one bit remorseful he hadn't shared this piece of information with her earlier. She supressed all of her inner rage, by putting more strength in her fingers; not that that hurt him in any way, but it made her feel more powerful somehow.

Yet, as she kept on with the extra force behind her every move, she could feel his muscles relax earlier than they usually did; the usual sounds that came from him were louder and more frequent. That, or she was just imagining it, she couldn't decide which was which 'cause damn it, she felt so hot in here! Why did he have to turn the heat up so high and make her feel as if she was burning? Her forehead was covered in a thin sheet of sweat, her back and neck were literally dripping and her stomach…she could feel it heat up and tumble and make all sorts of weird things! She'd bet all the money she'd earned the heat was to blame for her rapid heartbeat, too! Soon enough, all she could hear was the thumping of her heart and the inhuman moans that escaped the man under her hands with every right touch and poke.

She was so flustered…! _Shut up, shut up, shut up! Why do you have to make such sounds? It's distracting. _He couldn't possibly hear her thoughts, but she wished he did just so he'd stop; what was up with him? She has actually heard him have sex and he wasn't so…vocal! Wow, bad thing to be thinking right now, especially with how she always gets the most vivid mental images—too late.

She stopped, took a step back and ran for the hallway! He was almost wondered what the hell was her problem that he actually waited for her to come back without complaining; when she did, a couple of minutes later, he saw she had soaked her hair and her face looked refreshed; her hair dripped water on her forehead and the blushing was that of a more human colour compared to the beet-red she had earlier. Her shirt was off, too and she wore only a laced spaghetti-strapped garment in white. Her elbows had water, too.

When she started massaging him again, only then did he stop observing. "Are you wet?" and for the first time, someone spoke this sentence and it didn't hold any double meaning.

"Shut up; you want me finishing this or not?"

"If you wanted a quick dive you could've just jump in the tub with me."

She stopped again but this once, she just looked at him. "You do know this is sexual harassment, right _boss_?"

"…yeah; massaging a naked man who works with you? How uncouth."

In that moment, she swore to herself she would never, ever take him seriously ever again. He was a tease and an asshole and he knew exactly what he was doing to her and why; after that moment, she just gave up. Her crush would go away. And if it didn't, she'd probably die alone in this house anyway, with no one to be there for her, so either she had a one-sided crush on her boss or not, it didn't matter much. In fact it'd be better because even if she found someone else to crush on, they'd never allow her to pursue more than just a fling.

Once she finished, she went to the four wing living room to give the rest of the team her little gifts. They were very excited but they of course never thanked her.

From that day on, his mood only picked up. When he decided that they should all leave for Japan, too – almost a month later – he was the happiest she'd ever seen him. Of course, it had everything to do with his father trapped in that suit, not three steps away, who came with. Still, just as foretold, he took her, too and she was overjoyed to see him keep his word to her—she didn't spend the extra time pouring over symbols and stuff to be left behind. From her lessons in the language, she could actually read, speak and understand the written language quite well, though she couldn't for the life of her make a decent kanji. But she read them just fine and that's how she knew where they were going: Namimori.

They'd decided to stay at a luxurious hotel at the direct centre of the city. Surprisingly, yet not so much, she really should have seen this coming, he booked ne room for the both of them. Granted, it was the most expensive and extravagant room of the entire hotel, and it was so huge it could be separated into three smaller ones and they'd be fine, but there was still just one goddamn bed! And he didn't share…what did that mean for her? She'd sleep in the bloody-tub! Or Jacuzzi. Or even on the floor, if he had any say in it. And when he asked him about it, just to humour herself, she received the exact answer she expected:

"There's only one bed; if you wanna sleep in it you'll have to do things that have nothing to do with sleeping first. If not, then grab a blanket and go to a corner."

That night, she did nothing but give him his serums and start reading one of the books she wanted to for so long but never had the chance! They didn't stay behind, but she did. They wouldn't let her come along anyway—this is a warrior's business, they'd said and ignored her after, but she definitely had no problem with it: just her and her book? Yes please!

She didn't even know when the clock turned from twenty past ten, to three thirty. And she wouldn't have, too if the phone hadn't rang. But it did and when she answered it, it was Lussuria. "Hey honey," he'd said cheery, yet she could hear the pain in his voice "I'm right downstairs, you know…in my room, they just left me. Could you please come and patch mama Lussuria up?"

"Sure; what kind of medicine-?"

"Bring your strongest painkillers and a lot of bandage~! Ooh, it hurts. Aw…I'm dying. Please hurry dearie."

He hanged up before she could say anything in return. Surprised, she took all he asked, and some more, to relax her mind and went to the elevator; she ran into Xanxus just as she was exiting the door. "Oh, boss; how is Lussuria doing? Did he win?"

When his face became visible, it was too obvious things did not go as planned. She made an awkward face and with side-steps made herself scarce. She only hoped the man who asked for her help wouldn't be hurt beyond recognition. With nothing but good faith she made it to his room…where he was left alone by any other Varia member. When she finally looked at him—man was he beat up! She couldn't bear to hold him in her sight for more than five seconds consecutively. "So, um…I'll fix you, I'll patch you right up and tight. Want anything special to eat while I tend to you?"

"No…! I just want my daughter's help. Make me better Franny-chan~!"

She smiled awkwardly and just did whatever she could to alleviate him from his pain. She didn't leave his side until he not only felt – he kept saying what a relief her help was and how he was already healed in his heart because of it – but also looked better. That was not achieved earlier than nine o'clock.

The next day, she woke up late, only to serve his majesty; shamelessly, Xanxus didn't wake earlier than her, in fact he slept in more than usual though the only thing he actually did was stand there looking pretty or whatever, seeing Lussuria was the only one actually hurt. That was odd by the way. Usually the one who put in the most effort was Squalo so…Were they taking it with turns? It made no sense otherwise. Well, no matter what, six hours of sleep wasn't too bad but she still felt sleepy, when she called for breakfast.

But that was about the only thing she didn't do: she proceeded to brew new medicine for Lussuria, something special just for him. Then, she made a tonic for his highness and treated him to a royal pampering, what with the massage being a given. He asked for that odd treatment with the ice-cubes; she realised he didn't just want it, but he needed it: he was burning up! Why was that happening, completely out of the blue? He didn't put in any real effort, definitely not physical. Was mere anger enough for him now? Did this have something to do with his anxiety maybe? She should somehow find that out, it could be potentially dangerous.

"Strip," she all but ordered him when room service had just closed the door behind them; the guy who brought them up thought she had ordered too many ice-cubes to be used for something sane so he'd left immediately.

_That's usually my line_; he contemplated for a fleeting moment, not failing to smile to the thought. He discarded his blouse immediately and sat on the big chair. He just stood with his back slumped then straight when the ice cubes touched and the slouched again. And then, the cold was gone! "What, that was _it_? Keep up!"

"I've been at it for an hour—it's enough! I can't feel my hands."

"That's not my problem."

"It sort of is because I'm still the one who makes all your medicine."

He complained a little, she coddled him some more but then she was more than done. Come evening, she was left alone again and she did the same thing she did yesterday and for the next two days that was her schedule. She hadn't minded nor worried, for any of them, until the fourth night of their stay, they returned one man short.

Squalo had all but disappeared.

She'd received no phone call that night; it put her on edge, because she'd come to expect it by that time: 3, 3something, but nothing. She'd figured they were taking turns fighting when each night someone different was injured and the rest were fine; that night they just didn't call. If that meant they were all fine she guessed it was good news, but she had a bad feeling that wasn't the case. So when the boss came upstairs she'd asked what happened and who won this once; he shot her such a look, she felt scared. But why? What was wrong?

She'd call Squalo and she'd find out…or so she'd thought. When she did call him, no one answered. That was strange she mused and called his hotel room. He didn't answer again and now she started worrying. Squalo never slept that heavily—if he was there, he'd pick it up just to tell her to stop in a very rude manner. But nothing came from there, no matter how many times she attempted to talk to him. Too worried for words, she put on her shoes and went for the room she knew he stayed at; she'd borrowed the boss's master cardkey so the door opened for her but…it was empty. It wasn't as if there weren't evidence of him being there, but he was nowhere to be seen. She turned on the lights; she searched under pillows and blankets yet nothing.

And that was when she started shaking from the implications: Lussuria was too beaten; so was Levi; and let's not talk about Bel. So what if Squalo had somehow…died? The thought alone made her eyes water. "No, no, what am I thinking? Was he dead, the boss would have-" she froze; the hand that tried to shake her fears away did, too. The boss had indeed acted stranger than normal and if she takes Squalo's disappearance into consideration, it would account for his behaviour. "But, but wouldn't they have brought him back? Wouldn't they want to make him a funeral? No one is that heartless…!"

That little voice inside her returned that night; what if they couldn't find a body to return to her? What if…what if he was really gone?

Tears left her eyes noiselessly but damn did they pour like rain!

No. He couldn't be…that! He was the most reliable of them all; there was no one else who left a fight less hurt than he. Every time, every single time, he was the one who always pulled through; how can he _not_ be back? She sat on the bed; her legs wouldn't carry her anywhere. She felt like collapsing, but she still had a glimpse of hope that maybe he was out drinking or celebrating with a woman on his victory. She turned her head everywhere just so she could stop the tears, but wherever she looked she saw him: his comb full of hairs on the bed side table—she could see him there fighting with his silver mane to untangle the bloody mess. Then she looked at the other side but saw how her creams, those he had stolen from her for sword maintenance, lay there in a box and she could just imagine how he was sitting on the floor next to it, taking care of his blades.

More tears and sniffing, all with the hope that at any moment the door would open and she'd see him swaying from the booze and the intoxication of women and she'd feel stupid for worrying…

But that never happened. She stayed there, at his room, the whole night; but not once did her hopes come true. Many times she heard someone at the door, but every single time it didn't open, or she heard someone other than Squalo she only fell deeper and deeper in her hole of sadness and desperation. He couldn't be dead. He just couldn't! She didn't even get to say goodbye…and if that happened to her a second time, she'd go crazy. Squalo wasn't as supportive as Lussuria or as nice as Levi but he was the first person to ever defend her against the crazy boss. Sure, he was more concerned about Xanxus than her, but he still helped her. And she always saw him as the big brother that had never cared for her – her real brother hadn't even come to her party – so she just…her heart just…her mind was addled and she ached.

She fell asleep on the foot of his untidy bed.

The next day, she woke up to swollen, red eyes and puffy lips. She'd fallen asleep while crying apparently because the sheets were her head rested, still had moisture. She was groggy, too and her back hurt like hell. Then reality kicked in, reminding her once more there was no Squalo next to her, snoring – she checked because she convinced herself if he were too tired he might not have tried to wake her up – and she wanted to burry herself in the sheets. But, she had to get up and go upstairs, she knew that. Xanxus certainly would take this far worse than her, no matter how insensitive he wanted to look. But damn it, she didn't want to think about that because it hurt too much just with her own feelings!

She tried not to think of what this might mean, of what it would do to their normalcy and everything else and she climbed the stairs to their room. She took a deep breath, calming her nerves and opened the door; she crept in, trying not to wake him up. After all, if she managed to sneak in unnoticed-

"Oi, the fuck you been?" Uh huh…there goes her plan of being unnoticed. "I haven't had breakfast and it's two o'clock already! Bring me something to eat now!"

"Sorry…I'll get the phone now."

"Fucking unreliable shits all of you! The one goes ahead and flings himself into a tank of sharks and you just disappear for half a day! What's next? Mammon gives to charity?"

So it had hurt him; there goes the first insinuation of Squalo's condition…wait a minute, did he say _tank full of sharks_? Did he actually say tank. Full of. Sharks? As in filled with sharks and water?

She turned flabbergasted to him, but there was no way she'd dare ask him anything with that deranged look he was giving her—the "dare defy me and see who comes out flambé". So she tried not to make herself sick with the need to know and kept up a front, trying not to give into tears.

She ordered for him, and gave him his serums. She spared the massaging part; she thought that was a good way to show him just how upset she was. He got the message and for the first time in his life, he didn't make fun of her "pestering feelings". Maybe because deep down he had them, too or that was what she wanted to believe.

**RING RING**!

It was her phone; she rushed to answer it. It couldn't be something good; the boss was in his room sleeping which meant everyone else was here somewhere: Lussuria and Levi were resting – she had just finished her follow up on them – Mammon was probably somewhere doing something money-related, Bel was being an annoying shit to the staff of the hotel and then there was that overwhelming absence of Squalo. There were no voices, no screams, and no loud man strolling around being helpful.

She answered before she got teary again. "This is Francesca Tutsi."

"Ah, thank God I was right about this phone; Francesca, this is Dino Chiavarone. Do you remember me? We met at the party-," he started but she cut him off a little too indelicately.

Completely mortified that he dared call her when he was on the side of that Tsuna person and an enemy to them, she looked all around her panicked – as if the boss could hear the person talking to her on the phone from all the way from his bed on the other floor – and then exited the room to head for the roof. She really didn't want anyone to hear her talk to this man. "Are you insane? How can you call me when you actively support-?"

"That is irrelevant now. I remember Xanxus bragging about how you were an excellent doctor and we need help; we have Squalo."

She was so surprised she almost dropped the device; for a moment her hearing was gone. "You…you what? I thought he was…are you telling me he…?"

"Yes that's exactly what I'm telling you and if you want it to stay that way and I can tell you do, then you must come to the rooftop of your hotel right now." They both hanged up.

There was nothing else she needed to hear; she thanked her luck she was already heading there – awesome coincidence, really – and only quickened her pace. Her heart was racing along with her feet; she could feel it wanting to beat out of her chest! Squalo was still alive, only very hurt. But if there was one thing she learnt how to do best, that was taking care of people.

She didn't know if she needed a key for the door or if it was open, so she fell on it with her elbow forcefully while also trying the knob; she almost fell to the ground by the force! She rolled her eyes; she could have checked without running into it…she took the battery out of her phone and put them both in different pockets, just in case anyone would try and track her. She also hoped _to God_ that Dino would come quickly or else someone might suspect something and then she may be a goner.

Sure enough, ten seconds later a helicopter appeared right above her head and a scaling ladder fell. She grabbed on to it tight and started ascending as the helicopter actually started flying away! "KYAH," she screamed and stopped dead in her tracks. "What the hell are you doing!? I'll fall _off_!"

"No, relax;" came Dino's voice loud but soothing "just stay there, we'll pull you up."

He must have pushed a button or turned a switch because the ladder was mechanically pulled up. She remained completely immobile. When she was in the copter, she tried to calm her heart which, what with the fear of falling to her doom and the hope she'd get to see Squalo alive and even help him get better, beat harder than a drum. She sat there on the uncomfortable metallic seat, being stared down by the majority of the people around her—about ten more people. They were all in suits but Dino, who was wearing jeans, a shirt and a khaki long jacket.

Said man sat next to her, putting on a smile, though she could see it was a fake one and he knew it. "I realize you do remember me; how are you?"

But she had no patience for pleasantries or fake smiles or meaningless gestures. She was there for one reason and one reason alone. "Horrible but that's unimportant; just get me there fast so I can be useful."

"_Useful_? That's an odd choice of words."

"It isn't; you wouldn't have called me if you didn't have a use for me nor would you have considered me if you didn't think I was the only other person who could do this. And I wouldn't have come if I didn't feel like I needed to do something other than sitting on my hands or else I'd go crazy; I _need_ to feel useful right now."

He smiled at her awkwardly; too much honesty did sound rude after all. He just sat there for the next ten minutes of the ride silent as the grave. He could see her distress in the way she hunched over nothing and how she tapped her foot on the floor nervously. She'd look everywhere but anything living and breathing; she kept glancing out of the window, while her hand travelled at her back pockets all the time. Yet what she was looking at wasn't the hotel they left behind, but their possible destination. She saw no hospitals or clinics and she became worried; if it were some makeshift inadequate room they had Squalo stored into she'd be seriously pissed…though that would explain the need to bring her along.

She shook her head. No need to be thinking of these things. They started descending and everyone was still silent. She'd get to learn whatever he needed later, after they landed. The fact no one seemed to be a doctor – since no one gave her a briefing – only meant that they needed the hands that were medically knowledgeable over Squalo at the…hotel they just landed on. She came out to face the sun; they were on the roof of another big, luxurious hotel, which had its very own heliport. They led her hurriedly at the canopied stairwell and they all descended in great speed—thankfully it was still sunny and she could see without tripping.

The moment they reached the first floor in their path, that's where they all abruptly stopped and Dino produced his cardkey; it was the same room, analogically, that Xanxus and herself shared. The door opened at his push and she found herself entering a whole different place than what she expected: instead of the vases, the paintings, the Jacuzzi…all the extravagant things were replaced with expensive medical equipment; the king-sized bed was gone and a smaller one was dragged at the centre of the huge room. Lights were shinning down upon the patient, who was surrounded by two doctors and three nurses. The only lights in the room were artificial, as all windows were tinted black to prevent sunlight from coming in. Squalo was hooked to many serums and the beeping sound that came from the right indicated he was also hooked to a machine.

Just a single glimpse of him was enough to make her heart aflutter; he was battered and bruised but he was alive; he was bloody and barely breathing but he was alive; his chest was opened as doctors who hovered over him operated, but his heart was beating. She stopped only for a second to realize it and stop the tears from spilling…and then she went into overdrive:

She rushed to their cleaning agents, scrubbing down to be able to touch and probe at Squalo if it were needed. The moment she was finished, she literally ran to his side, asking for an update. It wasn't a good one: multiple wounds everywhere on his body; organs damaged; sight might be lost from the left side if they didn't find a way to deal with it for good; body, battered. The sharks managed one or two very good bites before they were killed or Squalo was removed but thankfully no big chunks of skin were bitten off. And of course, his prosthetic limb was intact. Of course.

She got the idea fast; she grabbed a piece of cotton and dabbed it in the solution they had for his eye. "Am I right to assume you prioritised everything else other than his eyesight," she asked for confirmation as she started cleaning his eye carefully? Maybe it was spotted on the retina but a pool of blood was behind it, too and she had to find a way to reach there.

The male doctor spoke first: "Indeed. We are struggling with his lungs for the moment; his heart seems fine but we can never be too sure with all the rest going on so we must be careful."

"That's because you forgot he has _two_ lungs," she snapped annoyed! "If he loses the heart he's dead for good though; focus on getting the heart at its best and worry about the rest next."

"His heart never presented-!"

"You checked it though?"

"Of course we did!"

Of course they did, what was wrong with her? She internally shook her head as she kept taking care of the eye. She needed a syringe! As she moved to grab one with her free hand she noticed something very, very disconcerting. "The liver?"

The guy doctor turned to her momentarily as he dropped something on the platter one nurse was holding. "What about it?" Seeing her face, even he sounded concerned.

"Is the liver okay," she questioned with more force than before?

The woman doctor wanted to turn but her preoccupation didn't let her; she stopped something from bleeding badly. "It was one of the few things that weren't damaged so we focused on other parts."

"Then why is he's peeing that colour?"

They all stole a glance at the bag that started filling and saw that brownish colour that made all cringe; immediately, they all picked up their pace, save Francesca who left the eye deal alone. "You take the blood behind his eye out;" she ordered the nurse closest to her giving her the syringe "I'll take care of the liver." She went for another syringe, searched to find the correct one, and took a sample from it. Just as she was about to start running tests, there was a sudden increase of his heart rate! Then it went down and lower.

"We have Multiple Organ Failure," a nurse announced. As if that signalled something inside him, he completely flat-lined! "Heart failure," all doctors and nurses present stated; they rushed to him. "Not all of us together," the woman doctor snapped and shooed whoever was on her left – it included Francesca – . But the woman doctor was good: it took her only a few seconds to get his heart pumping again, at which Francesca went back on her sample…and the liver was clean. The problem was a side effect from the paracetamol they gave him. Thank God for that. She announced that, too and then went back on the eye.

"I cleaned it, there's no need."

"Then give me something else to do, quickly!"

The female doctor spoke first. "You can do the full body work; keep testing him every half hour for everything: blood, urine, marrow; make sure he's not intoxicated in any way. We need those labs."

"Yes ma'am."

And so she did; and so she checked; and so they saved him from death. It was more times than one they did that and it wasn't just the labs she ended up doing: she administered the meds, helped with some of the surgeries – she'd never conducted an operation that wasn't an autopsy before- and even wiped up some of her own concoctions to help with the pain and the healing process.

None of them had any idea on how much time had passed from the moment they had stepped in the room till the moment they stopped, but they knew it must have been too long: their feet hurt from standing; their stomachs were so empty they ached. Their throats were dry and their eyes closed all by themselves. They were sleepy and hungry and thirsty and tired and just wanted to disappear into the wallpaper but Squalo's clammy forehead and his slow breath served as a reminder of what was at stake.

But as his slow breath steadied and his clammy forehead wasn't feverish, they finally had a chance to relax.

"Bring us something to eat, will you?" The guy doctor turned to one of Dino's men who had come to take a look. They did that almost every hour, which was a good way to keep track of things, but after a while, they stopped paying attention. "What do you want guys?"

"Anything with fibres," a nurse answered.

"Meat please," another exclaimed!

"A fish soup with lots of bread," the last one ordered, smiling through her exhaustion.

"I want a huge ass burger with fries," the woman doctor explicitly said and took no objection.

"Well you heard the ladies; I want a lobster with garnish."

"And what will it be for Miss Francesca?"

"My head on a platter; if anyone finds out I'm here that would be best."

"…I'll bring you a pizza then."

She groaned as if to show her approval and the man left; the med staffs was left alone only for a short amount of time, but it was enough for all of them to introduce themselves and give compliments to each other. The oldest nurse with the black hair and eyes was named Hiroko; the one who still had spots from being a teenager – yet a damn gifted teenager – was named Clio, from Cleopatra; the thirty-year old one was Yuki. The woman doctor was called Andréa, and she was Dino's physician. The guy doctor was called Angelo. He was there after Dino called him but he had flown with him from Italy.

She then introduced herself and surprisingly, the two doctors knew her name. They were in the family for a long time they'd said and they were there at her party, though they never met her. "Wait, you're Varia; I remember the uniform you wore—similar to his. Is that why they called you?"

"Yes and…yes I guess; I um, I'm really glad I got to help him. I…" she started thinking again; oh no, that wasn't good. Here comes the waterworks. She blinked rapidly to make them go away. "I really hope he wakes up with no brain damage. He's err, he…excuse me for a moment please."

She stood up fast in an effort to breathe; it was no joke how worried she was. She kept feeling her chest being crushed by despair while being lifted just a little by hope: hope he wouldn't be vegetated; hope he'd speak soon enough with that ear-piercing voice of his just to call her stupid. He'd get right back up without a problem and he'd have no more problems, no ups and downs—from now on it was all uphill. She knew she was being too optimistic thinking he'd get better and better from now on but just the idea of him not waking up just as he was threw her in agony.

And then there were the severe consequences she'd have to face if these news reached her boss from anyone else other than her or prior to Squalo's recovery. She prayed to God and prayed to the Mother of God and the Son and the Holy Spirit that everything goes as she wished them, just this once. Just this time, until Squalo became even a little bit better, God would spare her. Her heart lurched_. Please god, just this once; please, let me have this one and I'll start going to church again, I'll convince them to let me go or escort me there, please…_

She had no way of knowing that her prayers would be answered exactly as she wanted them. And never had the phrase "be careful for what you wish for" ever been more appropriate for her.

.

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><p><strong>AN**: That was it! Hope you enjoyed the read. Please review, it means a lot.


	20. Epilogue of the ring battle

**A/N**: new chapter. Hooray! It's finally ready to see the light of day (night, whatever) and so it is released into the world.

I do not own KHR yadda yadda yadda.

Thank you beta reader Orihara Izaya and all you wonderful people who take the time to review, alert and fave, just know you have a very special place in my heart. And now the show goes on~~

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><p>=:=:=:=<p>

When Squalo moved for the first time, she was the one watching over him; well, she was constantly watching over him but the others took turns relieving her from her duty, meaning that she stayed by his side but she could space out. Yet when his eye twitched and his mouth opened and his facial muscles contracted, she was the first one to observe it; it was her turn to look at him closely enough to see the pores of his face and she finally caught some movement! Her eyes widened and she positively panicked! He was—he was moving; he was waking up! She waved all around her trying to alert everyone else but her throat was too constricted to produce sounds so no one must have managed to understand the message she wanted to convey because none came. But she stood over him and watched closely as he started waking…

"_W, wa…water_…water!"

She fumbled around to find the things she wanted: clean gauze doused in water on surgical tweezers; she put it to his lips and he suckled on it. When he needed more, she dipped it in the water again and returned it to his lips. "My eye—the light hurts it," he said, sounding as bad as he felt.

She immediately ran to cover it with anything; she found a small bandage and wrapped it around his eye haphazardly. Gosh, why none of the others came here to help her patch him up? Annoyed, she looked around her…only to find she was alone in the room. Everyone else was gone. Where had they gone? Ugh, unimportant. She kept doing what she had trouble doing a moment ago. She still couldn't do it, but she tried harder.

"Is this better?" His throaty groan came as agreeable so she stopped. "You need anything?"

His sandpaper voice was heard again. "A reason on why I can't move."

"We mummified you—meaning you have bandages all over your body. We left your eye exposed because we needed to verify the sensitivity; if you feel it, it means it's usable. It'll…it'll be alright, you'll see through it again I promise…"

Fits of tears seized her and she started shaking; she hugged him as tightly as she could without hurting him. "VOO-ooi," he started coughing "v-voi, what's wrong with you? Just because I can't move doesn't mean I wanna put up with your emotional shit!"

She started laughing and wiping at her eyes but still more tears came. "Ha ha, I know, I'm sorry; I'm very sorry for crying like this but you're awake now! And you'll see again." Coughs of laugh, sniffles of joy escaped her and her eyes were raw from all the wiping and the rubbing and she was so exhausted but she was so happy! He would be fine, just fine. And if his reactions proved anything, then his brain was undamaged. The moment she heard that "voi" she knew everything was going to be just great and she didn't have to worry again…!

"…stop hugging me. Seriously you're getting my bandages wet."

"Oh sorry," she distanced herself immediately "I'm just glad you're okay." She wiped her running nose with her sleeve and gave a weird smile.

"Yeah, I got that, whatever; I'm hungry, I want to eat." He spotted the barely-touched pizza and he felt his mouth water. "Gimme that-!" She slapped his hand away and gently pushed him back.

"You have undergone major surgery," she scolded, hands on hips now; when he made another effort to reach at the pizza she pushed him back down and then toppled the box and the contexts fell on the ground.

"NO-oooh," he started coughing and grabbed at his sides in pain "dumb broad, why waste all that great pizza?"

She hit him on the back of his head at the only place he didn't have bandages – as lightly as she could –, and glared at him with her hands on her hips again, balled in fists. "I repeat: you've just undergone major surgery" she was very adamant about it, tapping her foot on the floor "you cannot eat processed foods—especially pizza with what all the cheese and everything on top of it. Good choice of food makes you heal faster. You need whole foods and mostly those with lots of fibres!"

He stared, a little taken aback but also a little worried. What would that mean for his stomach? "Which are…?"

"Fruits! Vegetables! Cereal! And no pizzas or hamburgers until you can get up on your own—something you won't be able to do for a week at least, lie back down immediately!"

He growled but allowed her to push him down. Sighing her relief, she realised she was really hungry; she heard her stomach complain almost in synch with the patient. They looked at each other. "I'll get some room service up here. And since you can't eat anything processed, I'll accompany you: we'll get an amazingly tasty fruit salad!"

"…I hate you."

"I know," she said, all smiles and hugs.

That last bit was enough to drive him crazy. He almost freed himself, but he couldn't move too freely so he stopped his dodge in the middle of his effort. "What day is it anyway?"

She opened her mouth with her finger up "…" but she just stayed like that. "I have no real idea. Wait, I'll call someone and they'll tell me."

"Wait a minute; this is the penthouse, right? How did you get the boss to change the whole floor…?"

When she gave him that surprised turned guilty look the moment he uttered the word "boss", the worst feeling of foreboding washed over him, like a cold wave that hits you when you least expect it. "This is…I mean, I didn't have any convincing to do. This certain boss had everything prepared in advance."

His ears twitched. "This_ certain_ boss? What do you mean by that exactly?"

She looked away with a sheepish smile on her face. "Wait and see," she went on with that smile almost glued n her face; she reached for the phone that seemed to be at arm's length "could you please tell me what day it is and then have them bring us two fruit salads…Dino?"

The word Dino echoed in his mind; Dino, as in Dino Chiavarone, the boss of the Chiavarone family? As in the person who was on Tsuna's side, that Dino Chiavarone?

He started sweating. What was with the first name bases, anyway? And how did he, but more importantly, she end up here, in Dino's freaking hotel room!? He started hyperventilating, seeing double. What did this mean for him? Would he be considered a traitor now? How the fuck was he not dead anyway? Dying for his boss and his cause would be an honour but being saved by the enemy—this was the worst thing he could imagine!

When she hanged up the phone and looked at him, she actually ran to his side: he was red, his arm muscles were twitching and the shortness of breath was painfully obvious!

"Squalo, Squalo look at me; Squalo take deep breaths! You need to take deep breaths…" she inhaled a big amount of air and held it in her lungs until he imitated her; her eyes were wide and desperately trying to get his attention even when her hands held his head to point to her. Finally, he looked at her and did as she'd instructed. "And then let go," she continued as if she hadn't been holding her breath to near asphyxiation.

He did it again. So she started taking deep breaths, releasing them only when he would follow her example. Soon enough they were both breathing in the same pattern. "Are you feeling any better now?"

"…" he glared, intensely, but it was a safe bet to think he had calmed down. "I'm not feeling any better at all! Do you realize where we are—where you fucking brought us? This is the lair of the-!"

"Okay, first of all, I did not bring us here," she turned away from him; pacing up and down, she had her hands tightly knotted in front of her. "Secondly, it was _them_ who called me to announce they have your dying body in their prying little fingers, trying to save you after you fell. Into a _tank_. **Full of sharks**!"

Her anger took him by surprise, honestly making him lean backwards; maybe it was also the news that **Dino** had gone to _her_ for help about him, no less. It was all messed up and his mind, addled by the drugs and the tiredness, it drew crazy conclusions. He preferred not to think about it, but somehow it was not an option as she kept running her mouth…!

"-and you have the nerve to say _I'm_ the problem!"

"…I didn't hear a word of what you said."

She looked at him with a start. "Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuurgh!" she grabbed her hair and pulled! "I just said I was fine all by myself taking care of the rest of the unit till they called me and said they had you here dying, which is why I am in this room on the first place! Ugh! Insufferable twat!"

She wanted to smack him, but she was too afraid something might erupt from the blow, so she violently sat down and violently crossed her arms and legs, till Dino himself walked through their door, with precious information about the day and hour: it was 29 hours later and the sun wouldn't be shinning for another three.

Today was the big day though…and they would have to follow him eventually, to where their boss and Tsuna would fight. Swallowing hard, once because of injuries and the other because of nerves, they nodded and started working like crazy on getting him to stand long enough to be put into a wheelchair. They brought them the food she'd requested earlier of course and went to work! As expected, Squalo wasn't taking this change well: wheelchair, fruits and cereal instead of real food, and of course her constantly touching, probing, and piercing him with needles…or taking off bandages at her leisure. He finally realised why the hell Xanxus was perpetually angry with her when it came to his medicine. it was so vexing! As if he was a baby or disabled, she had to take "extra care" with him. He's not fragile goddamn it, he was just a little hurt!

When he exclaimed that out loud though, after thinking about it for ten minutes at least, she looked at him surprised. Then she looked like she understood his problem; she raised a flat palm in a "wait" gesture and put her ointment down. She smiled at him. He started getting scared. Then, she patted him on the head still smiling, which only made it worse for him. In the end, she jabbed at his chest with two fingers…

And he started hurting and bleeding out of his bandages!

"VOOOI! What the hell you crazy ass bitch? That fucking hurt! Are you trying to heal me or kill me?"

"…aw, sorry, here I thought you were not fragile, just a little hurt…"

He looked at her almost appalled. "You purposely made me bleed just to prove a point? Good god, I was right…misses S. Save the sadistic tendencies for someone else, okay?"

"Alright," she replied with such an expression one would think he just commended her on something big; Dino, who was there watching—trying to get some information, just looked at her completely lost. Did they turn her into this or were she never really their prisoner? He shook his head indifferently; he'd seen worse, he supposed.

But the surprising part, the most surprising part of all for Dino, wasn't how she would react when Squalo pissed her off; if anything it was the calm moments between them that had him wondering what had exactly happened to her whilst in their "care". She was attentive and so very caring with him: her every move was calculated to ridiculousness, each time she touched him she made sure it wasn't uncomfortable or non-medical related, and of course, each time he would wince in pain or just grimace, she'd take it as a personal failure of a very important mission and come close to tears, every single time.

Why?

Dino could see it wasn't something Squalo did—if anything he looked mortified by her almost crying when she was about to lose her composure. So…was it a personal thing? Did she feel unworthy if he hurt because she saw it as her job to keep him well? Did she blame herself for this in some way? Nah, she appeared to be a logical person…so he decided to do her a favour.

"You should go to sleep Francesca; you've been up for more than 24hours without rest. You will be leaving this place not 12hours from now, so try to relax a little. You can have my room, too. You seem to have taken great care of Squalo anyway, so he'll be fine without you by his side for some hours."

"No, it's quite alright," she said offhandedly and smiled "I am tired, but even if I try to catch up on some sleep, I won't be able to relax," she admitted in the end, her weariness translating into her stance even: she was bent and supported herself with her elbows on her knees. Her hair was a knotted mess and her clothes were wrinkled. The bags under her eyes appeared to be like trophies though: her smile was bright and satisfied.

"No, go to sleep; you're annoying, clinging on my bedrail like this. It's like I'm a cancer patient and you're waiting for me to kick the bucket!"

"Don't say stuff like these," appalled, she stood up trying not to hit him for what he dared to utter "it's nothing-!"

"I know," he cut in, dragging the word out exasperated. "Just go the fuck to sleep."

"But…I don't want to." He clucked his tongue, yet before he could complain, the words died in his mouth, as hers hit the air first: "you're here; and alive. And awake…why would I want to sleep?"

She didn't threaten to spill tears, neither did she look panicky or emotional. She was simply…content. She was happy she was in his presence, she was glad he was there but most importantly, she was thankful to god he was alive. A feeling like this, gratefulness, she hadn't felt in a long time. She was feeling humbled by the developments, small yet at the same time burdened with the task of keeping him. What to keep him wasn't a question for her: just keep him there, healthy, shouting. Her smile was that of transcended relief, if that was possible, yet at the same time of duty and promise: she would stay by his side until he could properly walk again.

Or if someone was in a greater need than him, but that would be difficult so she barely thought of it as an option.

"Tch," he did finally "what's up with the creepy face? Fine, you can stay here. But I have no obligation to make this easier on you so," his smirk was wide as he paused for effect "go get me something to drink now. And look at my pillow—it's making my back sore. Fix it. and what's up with these fruit? They look spoiled; I'm not eating that. Go get me something else. And don't get me started…!"

Dino thought it very bad manners at first, to treat her like a servant after that most heart-warming speech of hers. But then he noticed how his orders sent her here and there; she paced up and down, huffed like a busy woman and the manual labour made her colour look better. Either lifting his bed or fluffing his pillows or actually moving the whole thing to the one side or the other, it made her feel…vigorous. And he could even see that small look she spared for him when he looked away: the gratitude and the fondness and the concern were unmistakably there.

That was the best he had ever seen her. At Nono's party, she wasn't this happy. At her own party, she wasn't this relaxed. But now? She smiled with ease and felt at peace. Why? Because Squalo was helping her. Suddenly, the man remembered the ride on the chopper and what she'd said to him: she needed to feel _useful_. And that was **exactly** what Squalo did for her. Either out of spite, thinking she was oh so tired, or out of actual knowledge she needed to be ordered around to keep occupied and feel better, he was helping her.

Dino smiled; he knew Squalo and he wasn't a sadist, really. Maybe they were closer than he'd originally thought. And maybe, just maybe, the Varia wasn't a bad positioning for everyone.

In the end, Francesca fell asleep at the foot of Squalo's bed. Only this once, he was in it. When he closed his eyes and mere seconds later she heard him snoring, she felt so relieved, it was like she was cast a spell. Come full circle, last time she slept on the foot of his bed she thought him dead and now she was the one taking care of him. She was…fulfilled, strangely enough, and felt more accomplished than she ever did before. And yes, she was ashamed to admit that included even her breakthrough that she made after so much hard work.

But that was just it, she supposed. She formed bonds much stronger than that of gain and interest; she became emotionally involved with these strange people. In the start of this whole endeavour, she feared them; she could see that much as she thought back to it, but she didn't think of them as crazy murderous assholes anymore—wait. No, she did. What changed though was that now she didn't think herself better than them, merely a part of them. She was a member of the crazy, dangerous, asshole assassins' group and she couldn't be more proud. Even her fear of the boss was gone, being replaced with a perpetual feeling of frustration and anger.

But it was true: she felt more pleased with herself she managed to save Squalo than when she finally completed what her aunt and her had been working on.

She fell asleep. In her dream, she'd seen the boss being hit over and over again by that Tsuna character, not physically but mentally. Then she saw him shrink so much, until he became pocket-sized. He then jumped in her pocket, still screaming profanities, but obviously disturbed and worried. He started ordering her around then to move here and there and… she woke up!

When she did, Dino was already there. "Oh hey…" she tried to lift her head but she was so sore she could barely move. Her dream made her think of Xanxus and how he wasn't really…she shook her head, trying to wave the thought away and her pain. "Can I ask you, how long till we leave? Is there a two-hour window?"

"…if we stretch it enough. Why?"

"I have to make a certain serum for the boss. It's a post-battle thing, nothing to boost him or anything."

"You know," he started walking close to her, keeping an eye out to be silent "you don't have to do this." He kept glancing at Squalo, making sure he's not awake. "You still have a way out," he whispered when he reached her. He sat low, to her level. "We can still keep you with us…"

To the best of her ability, she turned to look at him straight in the eye. She had this dead-fish look in her eyes that was very disconcerting. "I came here for the sole reason to help Squalo, why would I want to come on your side? Look, mine isn't the best, I give you that; and we may not win, I give you that, too. I mean, good God, if Squalo is like this…but I won't leave the squad. I made an informed choice to follow them. I'm not going to betray them just cause I can—the _only _reason I came here was to help Squalo, don't misunderstand. I'm not interested in joining you. No matter how much of a better person you are, and I get it that you are. Really. But the serum I'm making for the boss isn't a bribe or whatnot; it's just me doing my job. So yes, I don't have to do this; I want to do this."

She was calm throughout her little speech, not trying to insult or feel insulted; he appreciated that. He nodded respectfully and allowed her to start working on what she wanted. He stopped to think then that Xanxus must have had a very special sort of charisma if he managed to attract so many people to him only through his bad manners and insane strength. He would love to know what it was that made all so loyal, he was so very curious…

Two hours later, she was waiting in front of a fridge; she kept tapping her foot on the ground and drumming her fingers on her arm or her sides, depending on how she stood. The fridge was like one of those she had with her aunt: the door was made of glass while the rest made of aluminium. She'd glance inside it ever three seconds.

"Will you stop that noise already?" Squalo had had it with her huffing and sighing. "We need to go!"

"But the serum needs five more minutes!"

"You've said that three times. Come on, we have to go. But don't worry; we have portable containers where you can keep your serum cold."

"Oh thank God…!" But then she realised. "Why didn't you say that earlier? Geez, like I hadn't told you the problem," complained the girl, rolling her eyes and Dino had to do a double take with how much she was complaining; she waited till they bring it to her and after examining it for about a minute, she finally opened the fridge and placed the three vials inside, ready to be used. She then grabbed the medical bag she'd prepared for the occasion and they all left for the rooftop. _Ugh, of course the rooftop; why should we take something earthbound and easy to escape from, should the need arise? Let's all plunge to our deaths!_

But she was truly thankful Dino allowed her to both make the serum and prepare that bag, full of medicine and bandages and anything she might need and handpicked herself. He was very generous; she doubted many people would allow her the same, with so small a price: she would tend to people of both her side and the other while there. So long as someone bled, she'd have to make it stop. She had shrugged uncaringly at that condition. She always wanted to be a doctor anyway.

The copter ride was silent – for the most part – but not at all awkward; Squalo was having staring contests with random people and only spoke when one gave him reason. Francesca kept leaning forward every twenty seconds as sleep threatened to overtake her and the man on her right, that Dino had appointed, kept raising his hand to stop her from actually falling from her seat. Of course the contact kept waking her up, but then she'd lean back and the same thing would happen all over again.

When they finally reached the place they were supposed to, half an hour later, she was sleeping soundly on the shoulder of another random, suited man who gently nudged her awake. She shot up and watched as people took Squalo in his wheelchair outside and started pushing him towards somewhere. She vaguely realised she had to follow him but damn…she was so sleepy and groggy. And she had to carry the bag, too? Oh man…!

As if reading her mind, the man who served as her pillow took the bag in one hand and the container in the other; he gestured for them to follow the rest. She looked at him, eyes half-lidded. "You are a good man, sir. Thank you. If you could also support me…till we get there…you know…"

He smiled amused. "Alright," he consented because the moment she stood up, she immediately sat down again. He offered his shoulder and she gratefully took it.

It took her about five minutes to reach their destination, something that surprisingly did not make the man homicidal: he was patient with her, supportive and kind, even offering a couple of smiles to her when she would look up all agitated. She even managed to overcome her drowsiness, as the cold air hit her face. It was soothing and refreshing, making her cheeks redden.

But when she finally reached them, the sight she was confronted with was not one she would like to ever see again: Xanxus was on his knees on the ground, spitting blood and screaming; the ring was no longer on his finger but thrown aside. She deflated at that realisation a little. She'd hoped for a different outcome…but she was prepared for both, given what she'd just made for him at Dino's room-lab.

Xanxus was shouting, but she couldn't hear a single word he said. Yet he was screaming and he looked particularly agonised. Maybe this wasn't the best moment to come out. She looked at her right and saw an ashamed Squalo four metres away, looking down. What the hell happened? Did she miss something big? Just when she motioned to take a step forward, Xanxus collapsed and a Cervelo – one like those who put her in that house all those years ago – took him on her lap.

_Wait, what?_

Then, she said something to him, he said something to her and then…he passed out.

_Wait, _what_!?_

Hold the phone here: there were two major problems with this picture—no three; first one: Xanxus was bleeding and on the ground. Second one: he was unconscious. Third one: that fucking bitch that was responsible for putting her in that fucking house had the nerve to take the boss and put him in her lap!? _Oh she did not…!_ She positively lost it! Those goddamn bitches that imprisoned them to solitary, both her and her aunt, had something to do with **this**? Was her _whole_ _life_ going to be manipulated by the likes of them?

Furious, physically shaking from her anger, she allowed an offended breath to escape her; then she grabbed the bag and the container from the man's hands and literally stomped all the way to her boss and the masked woman. She stared at the Cervelo in question; hands now crossed and glare deathly, she waited.

Thoroughly ignoring all inquisitive looks and legitimate questions that surfaced along with her, mostly from their "enemies" – such as "who the hell is she?" and "where did she come from?" –, but some from her own allies as well – like "where the hell was she" and "why did she disappear" –, she kept staring down at this woman with ferocity. The Cervelo hadn't noticed her yet but she finally raised her head to see what everyone was talking about. When she did, a staring contest ensued.

"Hands off him Cervelo," she spat the word "he needs medical attention."

As if programmed, she immediately did what she was told. "Francesca Tutsi," she gravely started; the mentioned woman did not give her the satisfaction of showing how surprised she was when the Cervelo did as she told her or when they freaking knew her name "your part has not yet been played in this story," she eerily said, as if prophesising. "Now take care of your boss…"

"Fuck you."

She snapped. She didn't want to, she wanted to remain calm. But she was so angry…! Not just because this bitch presumed to tell her what to do but also because, in fact, for some crazy, messed-up reason, she actually felt obliged to do it. The thought alone made her mad—at herself. How could she feel like that? Hadn't her life been dictated enough by these…demons?

She chuckled deprecatingly and bent down to her container; _I was going to take care of him anyway, stupid Cervelo_, she thought annoyed and opened the metal case. She took out the serum, shook it a little and when she saw the colour was right, she opened the other bag and took out a syringe; she drew the liquid out, made sure the shot was safe to use and promptly stuck the needle in him. His own colour seemed to return to him a little; what with all the blood loss, she feared he would definitely need a transfusion.

She did no more work on him though; she only turned to the "audience" and looked at them at a length. "I'll be tending to Nono now; then it's Sanada's turn" she spoke in her Japanese, which weren't as good as she would want them to be. Still, she may have had a horrible accent and everything, but she made sense so it was enough. "If anyone else wants to be treated, please form a line."

"Aren't you Varia," a young man, a boy really, asked annoyed? He had white hair, longer than ordinary and he was quite beaten. There were small dynamites attached all over him. "Why should we trust you?"

"You shouldn't, in that sense; but I'm just a doctor. I don't wish to harm any of you but then again, you don't have to take my word for it."

She knew trust issues when she saw them and decided not to try and relax him—he simply wouldn't; he must have been that Gokudera who was the right hand of Tsuna. She went to Nono though and knelt beside him. She looked him over once and then turned immediately to her supplies; he just needed to be hydrated and "fed". He essentially lost vitalising power. She took out the bag of water she'd brought with her, like the ones in the hospitals, and hooked his arm to it. Then she did the same with the other hand and hooked it up to nutrition.

"Francesca child, is that you…?"

She jumped, almost spilled the contexts of the one bag. "N-Nono…" she looked away to do her job, but mainly because she was ashamed. "I'm so sorry."

He smiled. "Don't be; you took care of me and kept me alive."

He was so weak, she couldn't bear to listen! And to think this was her doing…just like with the death of his sons…and she had the nerve to touch him and—"I hope you get to feel better; come take him," she shouted the last at Dino's general direction. "I'm sorry about your son," she whispered before she left him and the people who were with her on the chopper took him away in a stretcher.

She took careful steps and stood in front of Tsuna. He was short and humble but somehow…he was such a presence! Not that he rivalled in any way her boss's presence but his was so calming, it unnerved her. "Do you want me to help you?"

He looked at her for what felt like a long time before he finally receded and sat down. "Please do."

She knelt next to him and started patching him up: bandages, ointments, desensitizers…ten minutes later she looked up to see a sleepy boy, looking at her. "Thank you," he said in the end and gave a small smile.

"You're welcome. Who wants to follow next-?"

A line had indeed formed and the first one there was Gokudera. She realised that she heard him at some point saying something about her paying if she did anything funny to his boss, but she'd paid little to no attention. "Maybe the boss trusts you, but I still don't," he said aggressively and sat down to allow the next one come at the front.

She rolled her eyes. Really? Tsuna had a white-haired, loud, or at least vocal right hand man who was overprotective? What, they made them one for each generation? She looked at their very own white haired right hand man, seeing him bandaged up and pouty. She couldn't help but smile.

One by one, she took care of most the people there; the only ones who stayed away, apart from Gokudera, was a black-haired boy with tonfa, who was watching her like a hawk – he must have been that person Hibari – and some of her own team who weren't all that hurt. On that note, she also managed to see the first female Varia member: a woman with long hair in a bandana! She was hurt, like the other two that came with her, but not irreversibly so. So she started patching them up patiently. Everything was finished in the next two hours and all was as well as they could be; best case scenario won out in the end and they all retired at their hotels.

They put Xanxus in a car, still unconscious. Squalo had stayed in the wheelchair only until he entered the car with the boss and the scientist whose worries now concentrated solely around her boss—the shark really was remarkably reliable: just when the spotlight needed to be shifted from him to Xanxus, he immediately pretended to feel better and not once did he wince or show signs of pain.

Of course, during the whole one-hour drive, not once did she stop giving Xanxus the first aid he needed, which was why she prohibited anyone else other than Squalo riding with them: she needed all the space she could get. "Thankfully, this wasn't a fight between Nono and Xanxus;" Francesca had said out of the blue, making Squalo look at her "imagine if he'd frozen again…it'd have been a nightmare!" she laughed at her joke, but she had no way of knowing that the joke was on her, because:

"…um…apparently you don't know but…Tsuna, that small guy, he uh, he froze him. He actually did—just like Nono had done all those years ago."

She'd stopped all she was doing and looked at him. "What?" It sounded like a question but the anger was turning it into something else. "What." every time she spoke it, the more it transformed into something different. "What!" Finally, it became the imperative that it was always meant to be and she glared intensely. "And no one thought to tell me that immediately!?"

"We arrived together; I figured you'd seen it."

"No I hadn't-…" She stopped to take a breath; she made it a deep one. "I didn't see it. But now I know and I'll take care of it."

The time she had left wasn't enough to awake him, so when they finally arrived at the hotel, they carried him to his room. The others hadn't arrived yet, but they let them know they were coming. It was going to be a long night, she knew. She had to make the boss fit to leave on his own before the week was out – he had always been giving her crazy deadlines – and she had to make sure he wouldn't fall into some sort of coma, if his vitals were any indication! She'd have a sleepless night, certainly. She sighed and started working on him.

At the beginning, each and every one of them who could still walk by themselves, had made it to the boss's room to see his progress; they ended up watching her run around and Xanxus sleeping. Slowly, one by one, they started leaving for their rooms, where – surprisingly – little things were left for them, to make them feel better. Per her instructions, though she never physically did it, everyone was treated to some sort of pain relief medication and other ones to help with the blood loss.

Squalo was the last one there; he was basically sleeping on the couch instead of sitting, but he was doing his best to appear as though he was only resting. At first, he was more anxious than her – not that he'd admit it out loud – but then, as he saw his chest rising and falling steadily, with no hindrances, he became all the more relaxed, till he slept. She shook him awake then, gently, and directed him to his own room; if he wasn't going to help, he was only a problem…or that's what she'd said, but she only wanted him to get some rest. He needed it more than their stubborn boss, who wouldn't stop resting…though when many hours later he still hadn't woken up, she was very worried.

.

. .

When Xanxus came to, she wasn't next to him to notice it, but _he_ definitely noticed _her_: she was the first thing he laid eyes on. The lights were too bright for his tastes, so he'd turned to look away from them even before he opened said eyes. He half-expected to see a Cervelo or someone similar but instead he was treated to the peculiar view of his scientist-nurse's back. She was kneeling in front of a cart with many trays, like the one that cooks use, and she was rummaging through supplies…hum, that was strange.

His head moved from her to said cart: it was fully equipped with bandages and other medical instruments and drugs—ah, now it made sense. He looked back to her and she was still trying to sort something out from the bottom tray. He easily decided that finding out where he was, despite the familiar feeling, became a priority so he looked around; a single glance was enough to understand he was in his hotel room. Yet something still felt out of place…

Oh, of course; he was lying down! He immediately attempted to move, but nothing worked. Oh wait—the memories came crashing down and then he remembered how that brat froze him, how the rings rejected him and damn it! Why the hell did that happen? But, considering he was plummeted to the ground, he knew lying comfortably was a good thing. Then what was didn't quite fit?

Just as he was trying to put his finger on it, he was distracted by Francesca who stopped the sounds she was making to stand up. She must have found whatever she was looking for and he turned to her, hating how she was practically taller than him now. With eyes barely open, he watched her approach him with a plate full of syringes with liquids and a large jar of salve; but she stopped before she reached him, why?

He looked up to see her face and saw the evident surprise, a pleasant one that dominated her features. But the next thing he immediately noticed was how horrible she looked: there were bags under her eyes while her hair looked oily and dishevelled. Nothing about her appearance seemed even remotely fresh…she blinked.

"Boss!" She ran to his side exuberant. "You're awake oh thank God!" she knelt beside him and then turned to her supplies; she picked the first – or last – syringe up. "Well thank _me _more like it; I've been working on you for half. A day! I was starting to worry you'd fallen into a coma."

Her mouth worked, agitated, but so did her hands: her fingers tapped the plastic, pushed the liquid to make sure there was no air and then found a good vein. She shot him with it. "And you should thank me, I haven't slept at all, to do this—I mean what were you thinking getting frozen again? Do you have any idea how much work that is? Now you'll have to go through some rehabilitation again. And don't get me started on all the-!"

"Hey," he snubbed, finally realising what didn't quite compute "where the fuck have you been?"

Her flippant attitude came to a screeching halt, looking everywhere but his face; in fact, she tried her hardest to look away without it appearing she put an effort, but she failed completely. The knot she'd swallowed didn't go away; it only grew. "I was helping Squalo stay alive," she finally answered as neutral as she could be, when it became evident he wouldn't just let this one go. "And I succeeded."

"You were with Dino."

"He was the one who provided me the equipment and the patient, but our contact stopped there; I just did what I always do."

He couldn't decide if her answers infuriated or satisfied him. Maybe both "and you came back when?"

"Wh-when Squalo returned, too of course! It just took me longer than him to reach you." Honestly, genuinely offended, she slapped the salve on his chest!

Wow, it hurt, it wasn't supposed to…he looked down and saw himself: he was mostly naked, only boxers on his person and everywhere there were wounds. Some trickled blood, some were starting to heal and others were already dressed. And on his chest there was a big, large burn—a new one that his flesh was raw and irritated. No wonder it hurt.

"Can't believe you implied I came at a different point in time! What's wrong with you? I thought I was—we were past this and you trust me now. I'm here, aren't I? Taking care of you, too…you'd think I'd have come back if I wasn't loyal to you out of sheer fear? My loyalty is being questioned for the same reason you now see me before you: I'm responsible for the well-being of Varia members! Yours **and** theirs—you selfish bastard."

His temper was rising with her every word; but when she dared insult him? He right about lost it. He felt his flame gathering under his skin, directly at his fingers, but he…couldn't summon it! It wouldn't, it wouldn't bend to his will! It just welled up and started expanding inside him and he felt it overwhelming him, making him—"BOSS!"

Her scream was followed by a bucket of ice cold water, effectively stopping him. "Don't try to muster up your flame; you need to be treated first. You may as well explode if you do."

"Why?" It took him a long time to ask her; he was trying his best to calm down so he wouldn't "explode", as if that was possible.

"Well, it's the same with when you first broke free from the ice all those months ago; the heat you built up when you regained consciousness was continuously being cooled down because of the ice. When it became too hot, instead of destroying you, it destroyed the encasing. But now, there is no ice so you'll need to be patched before you try again. Just lie here and I'll take care of it."

"How did it happen?"

"Well…it has to do with the ice; last time, it blocked your pores so much and for so long you lost the ability to produce it outside of your body for some time. In short, Nono's flame kept beating yours for too long."

"Are you telling me that brat's flames-!?"

"No," she explicitly but calmly stated "but he did freeze you; in combination with the ring's rejection blocking your paths, it resulted in the same thing."

And there, he found out what kept nagging him for some time: did she or did she not know about his blood status? It turned out, she did; and she, along with everyone else, kept supporting him, treating him the same. Somehow, he felt something…positive inside him for the lot of them. Something like appreciation.

"You saw that."

"No I didn't; I came right after, but I did the math."

"…tch, of course," he snubbed "that's all you do: equations and damn medicine, you good for nothing hag. So what now? You'll be this annoying every day, just because I'm not his real son? Or do you think I'll let you—just because I am in this fucking pinch-"

Just as he was about to get angrier and angrier, her looking at him dumbfounded stopped him. "What?"

"What, what?" He kept being snappy, but very given up about it. "You wouldn't fucking dare pity me so you preferred being a little shit about it, didn't you? Well don't get too excited cause the moment I get up from this fucking bed, I swear I'll fucking -!"

She dumped another bucket of the same icy water on him. "Boss, I told you not to push yourself." Her scolding attitude was replaced by that of sheer question. "And what in earth do you mean? I knew about you and Nono not being blood related more than seven years ago; I had two DNA samples, one from you and one from him, and my aunt had me compare them…and look at the differences. That was when I first knew. It wasn't really hard to understand once I saw the DNA sequences. And if you think my change in attitude has anything other to do than me being positively furious because _you_ went ahead and got **popsicled **again, you are very, very wrong."

She finished with the salve and at the same time, as if proving her statement, she finished with her words. Then, she went to the cart and took something else, her head held high all the way through, huffing and complaining to herself. "Stupid boss," she said quietly yet to his face when she returned with another salve and many bandages "getting involved with the Cervelo. They are bad news. Who do you think was responsible for my aunt and my imprisonment in that house? They are merciless! You should've asked someone about them…goddamn bitches…

And what's with your nonchalant attitude? Be a little worried about your condition! It may be reversible, but that's no excuse. All of you, making me worry: first Lussuria, then Squalo scared me half to death and then you, not waking up. I swear you're all doing it on purpose. And you have the nerve to call _me_ misses S. I went from thinking Squalo's dead to you being comatose…I may not have a heart condition but you're working really hard to give me one!

And what in earth drove you to put those rings on? If you were so hurt, you should have just left them alone; it nearly shut down all of your organs. Even though I did try to help you with that, it just didn't work."

Her mumbling was annoying but then she said something interesting; his attention was recaptured. "What did that last part mean?"

"Um…well…"

One eye pried open and stared at her. "Explain."

"I uh…my research? It was about the rings," his eyes opened both "and how to um…enable people of not Vongola blood wield them." Blood rushed to his head—was she serious? Was she just sharing all these very important information!? "I developed a serum and started giving it to you without telling anyone but…it didn't work. The ring still rejected you. I'm sorry. I guess it didn't turn out to be as effective as I'd hoped. But at least you didn't die!"

Wow, too much information and he was too intoxicated by drugs and sleep to think straight; there were too many things to consider and too many knew "exciting" news he needed to contemplate on. But that last part…did she use the words—"Die? What does that mean?"

"To put it simply, if you wore the ring without any blood relation, it triggers some sort of severe allergic reaction that also imitates lupus symptoms; something from inside the rings spreads in your body and evades your every organ. Soon enough, our system recognises itself as an enemy and starts attacking. All of that, in matter of seconds so in the end you die in less than half a minute from multiple organ failure.

So, ultimately, my serum didn't work entirely, but it did keep you alive."

"Why didn't you tell me this before?"

"…" she stopped her hands and looked at him. "If I had, I only would have hurt you more."

She didn't speak again; he figured she didn't have to. But she was an unforgiving and a cruel woman: not a finger did she lift, yet her words blew holes in his ego. She just implied something horrible to his ears and what with all of his previous insecurities resurfacing, he wanted nothing but to disappear…or sleep and not wake up before he was powerful again. Did her serums not work or was he just not good enough for the rings? Did they reject him because of him and not his blood? Was he really not worthy? What if the Varia boss was all he would ever be—just another guy, no better than those he'd kick around for being beneath him?

Once more, he felt inadequate. Once more, he felt like dirt on someone's shoes. What good does "love" do him if it isn't accompanied by privileges? Again and again he couldn't be what he wanted, what he deserved. Why would Nono love him but not recognise him as an heir? What good is that to him? And if he couldn't give him something so basic, his rightful place, how could he even say that he loved him anyway?

He only belittled, ridiculed and humiliated himself…

A blanket of cold laced his forehead; she must have put something there to cool him. How… appropriate, he realised, just when he needed it, she did it. Strange how she seemed to do that a lot—that was a good quality in a-. He stopped as his mind went black. What was she exactly? A servant? No, too talented – or opined – for that. Was she a doctor? Nope, it was definitely more complicated. Could she be…a comrade? It felt odd, just thinking about it, but at the same time, it made sense: she earned her stripes fair and square, so she earned his respect.

Deploying underhanded methods to check her research and help him at the same time while keeping to her word and helping…he gave her less credit that she deserved. No, he wasn't about to start praising her but maybe it was time he started trusting her with more things. Apparently, she qualified. He allowed himself to wallow in self-pity and realisation, as he drifted off to sleep.

=:=:=:=

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><p><strong>AN**: End of chapter 20. I should make a special or something, now that Christmas is slowly making it's way here...or should I? On with the real plot or should I just beat around the bush a little when the holidays come? Meh, I don't know, you could tell me what you think.

Sooooooo either for the chaptter itself or the suggestion, please let me know what you think in a review~! F_A_I out.


	21. Memories

**A/N**: I've been terrible at keeping the deadline so...double update! Yay! I was working on this epic - apparently - and I realised, I couldn't let it out in the world before it was complete but then it turned aout to be 18.000 words. So I broke it in two pieces. Sorry about the long wait and here is a two-chapter mini arc that is in no way completed but at least its immediate purpose is served. Hurray.

Thank you all you lovely people who reviewed, you have a special place in my heart. Those who Faved/Followed you're sweethearts! And to my lovely beta reader I'm so sorry! I'll never do this again, ever. And now on with the story~~.

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><p>.<p>

. .

Even before they returned to Italy, her life was a living hell: she had to take care. Of everyone! Every. Single. Person. The only ones who didn't need anything were Mammon and Bel which of course meant the only one who didn't hang around her was the first, as Bel kept badgering her, wanting attention. He was also somewhat hurt, too, so she couldn't just ignore him…but they all made her life miserable and difficult! She couldn't catch her breath, not for a moment: Squalo was moaning in pain; then, Lussuria was sighing and being all "delicate". Then Xanxus would wake and take up half of her day and in the end, Levi and Bel would get their check-up. In the very few hours she had in the in-between she read up on a research she'd found online, about blood and allergies, from a certified expert.

When they did return to Italy, she'd wish she was back in the goddamn hotel because now? She didn't have time to sit still for ten minutes: oh she wasn't taking care of limbs and skin and blood samples? She cooked! She wasn't cooking? She tended to her lab – so forlorn did it look, she actually put in hours to clean it –. She wasn't doing anything else? Of course she was; there were so many people to help. She barely had the time to sleep and never more than five hours! Her newest find, that research, was left aside, forgotten. She sighed. She really needed a night off…

It wasn't until a whole month later that her absolution came, in the face of recovery: Squalo was brand new, allowed to eat all of the synthetics he wanted – something he'd been nagging her about, surprisingly – and that took a heavy load off her chest. Three hours of her morning returned to her and she could study the first one and a half without a problem. The rest she'd spend it, trying to fit in both entertainment – catching up on shows – and other things.

But amongst all these, there was something that was scaring her the whole while; as if it wasn't enough she couldn't even get the appropriate sleep at times, ever regretting everything she'd done, but Xanxus was somehow…weird. He wasn't different in his behaviour towards everyone else, just her! Did she do something, insult him in some way? She honestly could not figure out what had transpired to make him change like that. Was this about her leaving for a while? It couldn't be, or else he would have made a big deal out of it the moment she returned—instead, he had barely spend two minutes on it.

She was troubled and the whole feeling was unsettling. She hoped things would soon go back to normal for she had no idea how to react to him when he wasn't shouting or exploding in anger and flames.

But the worst experience must have definitely been the day Silvana came by to visit. She had appeared out of nowhere, in all her voluptuous glory, with flowers and chocolate. She'd dropped by to see if he was well – they were all under strict supervision from Nono and that's how she found out he was hurt – and maybe make him feel a little better…as it was Francesca who had gone to the door, and Lussuria had told everyone who _was_ at the door, it was a given that by the time Silvana had made her request, the whole squad was eavesdropping.

"Excuse me, what?" That was the first polite reaction the scientist could manage as a response.

"I said: you think you can take me to his room? I bet he'll be feeling much better after I leave."

"Oh that's what you said…" she paused in an ultimate effort to control her nerves and keep up appearances. "You may actually have a point, but unless you're here to offer him a physiotherapy, then I'm afraid I can't let you pass."

And just like that, the temperature of the room dropped. "But why not?" just as Francesca was trying her hardest to remain amiable, so was she.

"He needs _rest_," she pointed out "and as much as I understand what you're…offering might have been in any other case therapeutic, I have to say that now it will only rob him of strength. Which he sorely needs. Plus, he won't want to be disturbed."

"Oh so I can go in as long I don't tire him or am I generally unwelcome?"

"Pretty much." She did not elaborate any further. On purpose. Silvana caught that.

"U shi shi, I see thunder between them."

Lussuria and Squalo shushed him.

"Very well then, I understand; _I won't tire him_. Can I pass?"

Smiles froze but they were still present; they stared at one another till the tension was tangible. "Of course," she conceded in the end "I guess he'll decide anew if he wants to be bothered or not. Why don't you follow me?"

The triumphant smile was replaced by question when she asked: "You're coming with?"

"Certainly…I wouldn't want to be scolded if I acted against his wishes."

"Better remember that when you do get scolded."

"We'll see, won't we?"

When they reached his room, Francesca didn't even knock. She knew he was either sleeping or lying – he'd already eaten his most luscious meal – and that would only anger him more, her busting in like that. She purposefully stopped Silvana from going in, too despite the door being wide open. "Boss, your lady friend is here," she said from the door, not quite walking in herself.

A single fireball was shot; Silvana felt like her feet were firmly planted on the floor, despite all the screaming her mind did to command her otherwise. If it weren't for the nurse's reflexes, she would've probably been burned to a crisp by now—her eyes were so wide she couldn't bring herself to even blink while her throat felt sore. Oh, she must have shouted in reality after all. "It's Silvana, not the other one!"

Another fireball was shot and this once her feet were a little faster to catch up—meaning they actually did. "I'm guessing that means you do not wish to see her at the moment. Should I tell her to come back—?"

The third fireball in a row discouraged Silvana enough to run away screaming; Francesca held her laugh in as she relished the feeling of victory…and of the fact the boss was somewhat getting back to normal, if the fire balls were any indication. "And that was her running away; would you like me to fetch her for y-_ou_…?"

She was gleefully watching her turn tail and run, so when he stood up, came to her side and grabbed her, she'd caught none of it. The air of surprise she released drowned the words coming out of her windpipe and she simply turned equally surprised to face him. He was only an inch away from her and his hold was bruising. His brows were so drawn together, it scared her. There was no evident anger on his face, just annoyance and something she couldn't quite figure out.

Damn it! He _was_ acting abnormally after all. She swallowed uneasily. "Wh-what…?"

"You brought her here just to see this?"

"I did not d-…I uh, I mean I wasn't, I certainly didn't sabotage um…I uh, uh, uh…" she was looking elsewhere, trying to remain calm but when she made the mistake to look at him once, she couldn't look away. This new expression of his was almost hypnotizing. Besides, she'd never noticed before, but his eyes were such an expressive brown colour…! Her lips kept moving, forming words, but she definitely didn't know what she was trying to say anymore. "So I would never…she isn't…"

"Wait," he paused for effect "you said sabotage?"

"I…don't really remember," she answered honestly.

A smirk started forming, but he stopped it. "You meant to say you brought her here to sabotage me…or maybe her?"

"Maybe—I mean, her…"

His smirk now took over, finally catching up to what her answers truly indicated: not fear, but attraction. "No," he said amused, letting go of her slowly "don't go fetch." The wild look in his eyes spoke volumes of what had just crossed his mind for one reason or the other and she knew she made the wrong choice, scaring Silvana away; she'd regret it. She definitely was not ready mentally or physically to go through anything his mind had just came up with.

Of course, she had no way of knowing the bad feeling in her gut that day had nothing to do with Silvana and it was something very different. Because that night, when she went to his room with some bad news and some good food, she came across a sight she'd never seen before.

It was dark. The room was half-lit by the artificial lights of the corridor and no other form of light came from inside it. The windows were open, the curtains drawn and they were dancing to the wind wildly. The scent that wafted to her nose was earthy – from the garden outside – and…something she didn't want yet to admit. It was dangerously close to abandon though.

"Boss, I have no idea what to do with my research; Nono has just contacted me through an agent saying he-…" At the complete lack of any sort of sounds or smashing, or anything really, she stopped abruptly. She raised her head looking around—she found nothing. "Boss? Boss~! Where are you? Boss!"

She dared go deeper into the room, closer to his bed and the door that led to his private bathroom. It was shut. Huh. "Boss," she more asked than announced herself as she hesitantly turned the knob; this tense feeling inside her only piqued when she saw a light coming from under the door. She held her breath and opened it.

"B-o…"

Her breath hitched and she felt like her lungs wouldn't let her expand to the right volume because she simply could not produce sound. For that one single moment, she wasn't able to function properly—her body wouldn't listen to her. The shout that wanted to fill the air, died on her lips:

Xanxus was lying in his bathtub. His hands were sprawled on either side, touching the floor, his head was leaned back; his mouth was hanging open, like it did when he snored, but no such sound came. And his eyes were closed. He could be sleeping, but the small river of blood which started from his nostril told her otherwise. Morbidly fascinated, she followed the little stream: it run over one side of his cheek, on his throat and over his Adam's apple to end on his broad chest – and in the water – or the tiles on the floor…!

The moment of panic passed and then her brain went into overdrive. "Boss!" fruit and meat were discarded on the floor. Shaking him violently she started shouting. "Boss, boss wake up! Wake up please!" he didn't even twitch. "Boss, open your eyes—can you hear me, boss please!" She shook him again and again but he was unresponsive! Her words didn't reach him nor did her gestures and she didn't know what else to do other than to shout "Squalo" to no one in particular in hopes he was passing by. "Squalo, _Squalo, _**Squalo**!"

When no reply or person came, she knew she had to do something: grabbing one of the boss's hands, she put it over her shoulders. "Squalo dammit where are you!?" She struggled with the task she gave herself because of the weight of the man. She couldn't balance herself nor could she get up! He was wet thus slippery so she couldn't quite catch him and she kept losing her grip—ten times she tried to pull him up and out the tub but she just couldn't!

She didn't give up though, she kept trying to stand with him even if she was rewarded with no success. "Squalo**Squalo**SQUALO!" She couldn't think of anything else to say. Her brain was frozen at the thought because Squalo was always supposed to be there for her but now he was gone and she needed him—_Xanxus_ needed him! How could he be missing now?

This wasn't anyone's fault, she was trying to remind herself, yet somehow she felt responsible. She must have done something wrong for the boss to be in such a bad shape to actually bleed like that! She couldn't stand the thought but she slowly realised panicking did her no good. She thought she'd stopped panicking when she ran to him, but she was wrong. She let the boss's hand go and instead slapped herself. _Think Francesca_, she ordered herself, _what should you do first_? Her mind started making a list; priority number one: check the pulse.

It was faint, but stubborn; he was still alive.

Priority number two: check the eyes. She immediately pried opened his eyelids but nothing appeared to be out of the ordinary. On to priority number three: check the temperature. To that, she hesitated for a moment. She was under the impression that when she grabbed his hand earlier and put his arm over her shoulders, she felt heat coming off of him…if that was his problem though did it mean he just needed some ice cubes or did this mean he had another condition that had to do with this? If that was the case then she might as well have admitted she has no idea what she's doing!

She was scared; she was truly afraid to see the problem was the temperature because then that only gave testimony to how…inadequate she ultimately was. She may have looked over something important and that was causing him to appear comatose.

These realisations went by in seconds and with trembling hands she reached his forehead. She flatted her palm…but immediately pulled back as if someone burnt her! He was so hot, like their stove when she was boiling water! She blew on it as hard as she could and instinctively plunged it into the water…only to find it was pretty much the same temperature and oh god, it burnt! She immediately took it out and wrapped it with a towel. Alright, he was damn hot. That must have been the problem. But why bleeding? Did he try and summon his flame, something he could actually do now, but not without some – not really this big – consequences? Or was this really her fault?

She took many deep breaths; she should really check the bleeding. He straightened his head and wiped the blood from his nose with the towel wrapped around her hand; when no new blood came out of his nose, she was relieved. Then she did the first she could think of to make him better: since she couldn't carry him out of the tub, she'd drain the water and remove the heat source – either the water was hot because of him, or vice versa, it needed to be removed –. She blushed when she realised he was in a tub thus naturally naked since he was so submerged, but she still reached for the stopper; she pulled it and slowly the water level lowered.

She'd grabbed another towel to cover him but as it waned, she saw he still had pants on! And shocks. And his shirt, she just noticed, was on the floor right next to him. Did this mean he plunged into the tub to cool himself but stayed so long the water took his temperature?! She turned the tap – she just noticed the indicator already was at "cold", too – and let the cool water fall on him…

She waited there, by his side, till she saw his eyes twitch. It took more than fifteen minutes of non-stop cold, frozen water. After the eyes, came the head swaying right and left – now it was dipped forward – and even after all this time, his temperature couldn't have been below 38C. She sighed her relief at his jerking fingers and took hold of a hand to indicate she was there.

"Boss, can you hear me?"

"Hum…huh?" he came to. His eyes opened as much as they could and the hand she was holding squeezed back.

Was she not so worried, she'd wince by the pain or think he did it on purpose, but his lost, sort of dazed look told her otherwise. "Boss, are you feeling any discomfort? Is it difficult when you breath? Can you actually hear m-?"

She froze; his expression had gone from lost to angry, _to hurt_ all in a matter of seconds! Then the confusion returned, hitting him full force and there, across his face, she saw the most terrible kind of fury she had ever witnessed come to this man's face. When he looked at her, a cold shiver ran from her heart to the rest of her body. He threw her hand, though he was squeezing it so hard just a moment ago. "The fuck are you holding my hand?"

He actually shouted at her! "I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to! I just wanted to make sure you were feeling well—boss, **are** you feeling well, despite the fever you must have?" She felt herself shrink just by his stare, but she wouldn't give up so easily. No matter what had possessed him to be so weird and all-over-the-place with her shouldn't stop her from doing her job.

"Yes, go away now;" the curtness and anger never faded "why are you even here anyway?"

"I uh…I brought you your food but" she looked to the side guilty "I dropped it. Well, it fell from my hands but you see I was worried about you, you were bleeding. There was a whole trail of blood—you can still see it on the floor and your chest!"

No matter how he was feeling, he still looked to where she showed; he met her eyes with wonder but still angry, when he asked "what the hell is the meaning of this?"

"I've no idea, this is the first time this happens. And when you were out, you were very hot and completely unresponsive till I cooled you down. You scared me. I'm sorry, I wouldn't have stayed otherwise…"

He looked as if he was shimmering down, but he was still curt. "Fine, leave."

"But aren't you worried why this happened? Aren't you at least a bit curious as to why in earth you'd just shut down like that? What if it proves dangerous? Things like these always are, unless something unprecedented happened-…wait, it did?" The look on his face had just answered her "yes". "What happened?"

"None of your fucking business! Something did happen so leave me alone; if it happens again I'll tell you and you can come here looking pathetic then, now just go."

He was upset. She didn't know what was going on in his head but for some reason he was very upset. Did it have something to do with the emotions that flickered on his face earlier? She could only guess…so she nodded as she timidly bid him "goodnight; I'll have someone bring you something to eat," for she realised, his issue was not a vague one, but he had absolutely expressed it every time he spoke: he wanted her out of there. _Her presence_ was his problem.

She felt hurt; after everything that had happened, this is what he acts like? She felt stupid for thinking after all the weirdness, he'd act nicer to her. After all, even his anger was different now. While she was picking up the food and the pieces of the plate that broke on the tray, she actually remembered the food was only a pretext to deliver him some news about her research and Nono. Yet she said nothing both out of spite and fear he might seriously lash out at her. Holding her head down, she dutifully did as she was told and quietly left the room, with a big wedge lodged at her heart. She'd seriously start developing a heart-condition.

When he was out of his range, she sighed her heartache.

.

. .

.

The moment the "click" of the door was heard, he felt like he could breathe again. This, this whole day was surreal! At first, he wakes up with a searing headache; when it goes away someone knocked on the door—and it was Francesca who had brought him Silvana. And it wasn't even that; it was Francesca who had tried – and succeeded – to turn Silvana away from him. Then her excuses and that look in her eyes were so goddamn satisfying to his ego that he didn't even throw a fit…and just mere hours later, the headache returns full throttle! But it wasn't alone, now was it?

It packed fucking memories.

Fucking memories of the future! Things that hadn't even happened yet nor will they ever happen, _ever_, came to him by some messed up arcobaleno magic. He was treated to images of a horrific future where things looked almost post-apocalyptic – as far as the famiglia was concerned – in which he even helped that runt, Tsuna, out of his own volition! There was a battle with a Byakuran guy and his six generals or whatnot and before that, he had even sent Squalo to them for help…painful reminder: he was still nothing but the Varia boss and not the head of the whole family.

How fucked up was that, to send him memories to serve as an "in your face"?

Especially when those weren't the only memories he received—he also got the grim in-betweens with now and the time the evil was averted: he got to know how Nono had died and why, how himself had changed and how he was actually married…

Well, he was more like a widower in those ten years later though, because those bastards of the Millefiore famiglia had actually killed his wife and only child. His name was Nero and he was two when he was killed. He and his mother had gone out for a walk…and they were gunned down. It was later determined it happened by accident for the Millefiore had no reason to make an enemy out of him and both mother and son had been caught in the crossfire. Standing next to an ice cream stand, they were nothing but the collateral damage of a dealing gone wrong.

He could feel all of the rage he had felt then as every single memory came back; it had made him so angry, he had had to throw himself in a tub and fill it with cold water! Yet not only did it not work, but the water warmed…and slowly, yet steadily, he could feel himself fall under the spell of the heat and the fury as he slipped out of consciousness, grateful that there was something that could make him sleep after all that mind-numbing wrath.

But even as he closed his eyes and gave himself up on the dreams, he saw nothing but said dead wife and child. As if someone had found the pad to his brain and dialled the "unfathomable pain and suffering" mode.

He knew this was never going to happen now, since those little Japanese kids had stopped it, but that didn't mean he was any less involved—it felt like he had just lost all of his blood family all over again! The same amount of agony he experienced in the future, yet somehow past, returned and he was nearly immobilised. No wonder he wouldn't respond to her—he probably never heard her! Or even if he had he would have just taken it as another game of his mind because in that moment, the aforementioned body part was playing cruel games: it kept showing him all the wonderful times he never really had with his wife and child, telling him it wasn't true, yet at the same moment it acknowledged of their truthfulness!

He was in physical pain from this future but past loss yet at the same time his brain would only present him with images of happy moments he shared with his family as if they were just happening. He was too exhausted to feel at a point because…because who does that? Who can actually go through that once, how much more twice? It felt like he was re-experiencing all the nostalgia that came with the first months after their death, and all of that in a time which he wasn't even married yet. How—how could he cope with that? So much joy thrust upon him with the memory of his son saying his name for the first time, only to be ripped apart by the knowledge he was dead anyway…

Only he wasn't. None of this ever happened. These were all memories of a future that could have been but no longer will be. And he felt all the crazier and messed up for actually feeling all those emotions. But he just couldn't shake the thoughts away…

What he found most disturbing though was the identity of his wife as well as the hypothetical impact her passing had had on him. His wife was – or would have been – surprisingly enough, the very woman he had just sent away; the one that kept coming back to him though he kept abusing her: his mad scientist and nurse, Francesca.

He was actually married to her? Why? He could remember a little on how this proposal had taken place – there were drinks and a party – but he couldn't fathom _why_. Certainly, he felt attraction in his memory-induced stupor but that was not enough. It wasn't even compelling attraction! He even felt a little attracted to her in his present life but his contempt for her never allowed him to think of her as anything as short-term amusement. Sure, she wasn't bad-looking and she was clearly a fitting candidate for a mother – medical skills, caring personality, attachment – but why did he marry her? It wasn't as if he first got her pregnant and then tied the knot nor was he actively looking to start a family.

That freaked him out good. In a weird mix of feeling happy he was once married to that woman, then heartbroken she died along with their son and then confused and outright scared she was the one he ended up with, he woke up. And then he saw her alive in front of him the very moment he opened his eyes! Relief she wasn't dead had flooded him and that was probably what had possessed him to squeeze back. Oh, which was another thing that drove him nearly insane…

So he barked at her, threw the hand he himself was holding onto for dear life, and told her to scram before he could tell her what was the first thing that had come to mind: thank God you're alive!

Now that he thought about it better, maybe if it wasn't for her voice and her persistent hand-grabbing then maybe he wouldn't have these nightmarish visions or whatever they were. Tch, of course that was it! Hearing her voice was what egged him on! Why was it that whenever something terrible was going on her voice was always there to guide him further into the mess? Just like then, when he was encased in the ice it was _her_ goddamn voice that kept him afloat and stopped him from giving in to the cold and let his torture be over once and for all. Just like it was her voice that stubbornly clung onto him like he was a thing and not a person—that voice that showed him where the light was amidst all of the darkness but at the same time, that light was so small and fragile, it was useless!

And now that he had someone else to blame for all the things he had just witnessed and felt, he thought it appropriate to go for a real bath, but not before whoever she'd ordered to take him food, had arrived.

But wait a minute…there was something about some Varia rings in there, too, left behind by the second boss of the Vongola. That was some interesting information he'd have that annoying nurse search for.

. .

.

Desperate to get out of this predicament with her own feelings and the everlasting question of "how the hell can you be constantly hurt by the most insensitive bastard in the world when you know he is the most insensitive bastard in the world", she started looking around to find Squalo. There was where she'd relieve all of her nerves! If anyone could stand it without being violent to her, then that was him: Bel would stab her and Levi would try to comfort her with hugs or something, so she stayed away from those two. Lussuria was a good pick too, but she wanted to vent. And Lussuria didn't deserve that.

Not that Squalo did, but he could handle it.

As she kept looking for him she found out that, surprisingly, none of them were anywhere in the mansion's corridors. She knew for a fact they had no jobs today and she saw none of them leave the building…so where were they? She decided to be brave and look for Squalo in his room. But he wasn't there. When she went to the living-room though, she found a crumbled little note on the floor that read "2nd living room, one hour". She hoped it was left for her benefit but she really doubted it given the state it was found in. Yet, she went where it directed and when she did, she found everyone but Xanxus there looking…away from each other in uncomfortable silence?

_Wow, what? What is happening_? They all looked so awkward to be in there, as if they had to discuss something no one really wanted to say—or had just finished talking about said topic. Ooh, she hoped the first so she could eavesdrop! Since apparently, she was not invited. Damn, that also hurt. What was with everybody today? She sulked at the mere thought, even if no one witnessed it.

It was Squalo who had the courage to break the silence which had come about by their conversation, one she was thankfully not privy to, as he turned to look everyone in the eye. "So we all agree that nothing happened, right?"

Some nodded, others spoke their confirmation. "But we can assume that nothing happened to the boss, too, correct?"

Same thing as before took place and, wondered, she watched everyone agree the "nothing" that had happened also "never" happened with their boss, too. Which in fact meant that "nothing" was something and it might have been serious if it was what caused Xanxus to get in that tub. And they had just agreed they wouldn't talk about it to anyone-meaning her, too! Why would they do that? Wasn't she a member of the squad? God damn it, she wanted answers!

"Great; this meeting is adjourned. I'll talk to the boss tomorrow. Unless he wants to see me tonight," Squalo finished with an afterthought, and everyone was dismissed.

What, no more talking? That was _it_? Oh hell no! She'd get to Squalo and he better explain this! She hid better behind the wall she was already using and waited for everyone to file out the room, in hopes the last one would be Squalo. To her surprise though everyone passed right by her. She held her breath in an effort to be completely stealthy but:

"Goodnight Franny-chan~" exclaimed Lussuria without even looking at her.

"U shi shi, see you tomorrow."

Her mouth hang; they all knew where she was and that she was there? "If you want to know what we just said then pay me a billion Euros."

She blinked in her shock but she shouldn't have because the sight she came across when she opened them took her by surprise. "…Francesca, I'm sorry," said Levi, looking heartbroken; his hand was grabbing her shoulder and it started forcing her into a hug "but there are some things you better not know." No matter how much she resisted, she ended up being crashed into Levi's chest and pushed for a short but painful amount of time. When he let her go, she had an imprint of his buttons on her cheek.

"Next time just come right in or learn how to sneak around better, will you? That was embarrassing," Squalo snubbed as he walked past her; she started following him immediately, shaking off the surprise of the whole scene.

"No, Squalo, wait!" She caught up to him and as they started walking side by side, she noticed for the first time how she needed three steps to match only one of his. "What happened to you? And if it happened to the boss, too then I have to know. He was lying in his tub unconscious, bleeding and completely comatose! Don't you think I should—?"

"You're here nor do you sound too worried so I'm guessing he's awake and fine now; meaning he didn't tell you and you came to me to find out." He snorted condescendingly. "You think I'm so stupid to fall for that? I was the one who just announced we wouldn't say anything to anyone; if you don't know what it is, then there's a reason. Especially if the boss chose to keep this secret."

"B-but I," she began complaining, but his raised palm stopped her.

"But nothing. Take it up with him. Besides, there are some things you're better off not knowing…believe me," he added in the end and all the discomfort from before found a brief outlet on his face momentarily. But it was there and she saw it. If it was so bad or weird to make Squalo quiet then maybe he was right and she was in a favourable position. Even if her curiosity was killing her, she figured she'd just have to tough this one out…or make the boss tell her somehow. Yeah, that sounded better.

"Alright, I'll take your word for it; goodnight Squalo. I'm going to my lab."

It was nights like these she really missed her aunt. She still talked to her one way or another – she had managed to print a picture of her in secret from Mammon – because it helped her with her struggles, talking always did, but it had been a long time since she last did it. In fact, she usually did it under her covers, late at night, sometimes even replacing a prayer. But last time she had taken the picture to her lab. If anything cleared her mind from emotional tribulation that was equations and talking to that photo.

It was one with her aunt and her from five, no wait six years ago. Wow, she had already spent a year with these people! _Ugh, anyway_. She wasn't even an adult when this picture was taken, but she purposefully chose that one instead of some others that were two or three years older. Her aunt looked…amazing in that photo. You could see she was worked to the bone, but happy for the line of work she was in, her eyes were alive with interest and hope and she was more beautiful than ever. It wasn't a long time after that her aunt started showing signs of fatigue and desperation about her predicament, but in this photo…she was the aunt Lucretia she wanted to remember.

She took a seat and sighed to the picture.

"It's day 356. I am…well-ish. I think. I mean, I don't know. I mean…they were supposed to trust me weren't they? I thought we were past the whole "I'm not telling you" part. Why would they need to keep anything from me anyway? And what did Squalo mean that if I didn't already know then what it was there was a reason? Meh, I'm telling you auntie, they are insufferable!

But hey, I didn't tell you; I have taken up a new project. I have finally found out a way to make a serum that…relatively works with the rings. I'm going to try several things—I think the rings rejected Xanxus because it had been too long since the last dosage. I believe it has to be administered in regular basis and no longer than 24 hour intervals. But I didn't tell him that. I'll disclose that information only when I am confident the serum I'm developing is 100% effective.

Oh, I have more things I need to tell you! I think my crush on the boss has started to go away finally…I know, if you were here you'd say that the fact I drove away Silvana proves otherwise, but hear me out! I believe that was a test. Not from the boss or God or whatever, I saw it as a test of character. And I believe I acted very civilised in the face of it all—considering last time I broke a mirror…wait, does that mean I just get to control my nerves better and not that I'm getting over it? Oh man…I really wanted it to mean I'm getting over it."

She sighed deeply. "I'm sorry auntie, I'm troubling you with such matters. Well, the good thing is, I have successfully gathered information about your son and husband. That dead-beat asshole is dating another woman, one that is nothing like that bimbo he was cheating on you with, and your son…well, him I don't get to track that often because I'm too busy with other things but he's coping better than I ever did! Ugh, I swear to you, I'll go visit him—and your grave the moment they allow me outside alone.

I mean, last time I went out I was with Lussuria for some clothes and then I went with Dino-do you remember Dino? I talked to you about him…anyway, I went with him to wherever Squalo was. But never was I alone allowed to leave. But I think I can get them to agree soon enough! I mean, what else are they going to make me do? Ah…maybe I shouldn't say things like these and bring myself bad luck.

Anyway…Christmas is coming! We're close to the most festive season of the year. And you know what that means, right? Our birthdays are coming up!" She laughed all by herself, a hearty sound. As if she was followed by someone and encouraged, like sharing an inside joke, she looked at the photo sideways. "You remember how each and every year we'd buy presents for each other on our few hours out of the house and though we wanted it to be a surprise, we always ended up in the same shop?"

Her laugh came back but subsided again. "And do you remember how we'd always buy the same stupid decorations over and over again from that same old man and he would look at us funny and then make a joke about how we are very out of fashion? Yet he always seemed to have them ready when we got there to take them!" smiles, giggles and something else shared her time equally and sometimes simultaneously. "And he was always so kind, wishing us; he was the first one to realise we had our birthdays on the same day!" tears pooled in her eyes but her smile never faded. "And we'd always have the same chocolate cake from the same bakery; and remember how we'd always spend it together? Remember how you wouldn't go home to your son and husband because no one would come be with me on that day and you didn't want me to be alone? Remember when you were here at our last birthday but now I'm gonna spend it alone because you _can't_ be here anymore because of me?"

Tears ran down her cheeks freely, but she promised herself she wouldn't sob, nor would she collapse into a heaping mess of drama. "I miss you so much! I wish, I wish I had talked with you more often I wish I hadn't taken things lightly. Then maybe you wouldn't have felt the need to go downstairs and accidentally melt the ice that fateful day and-! I'm so sorry." She was almost bawling, but she felt so proud of herself when she managed to keep it together. She knew aunt would be proud, too. She grabbed the framed picture and held it close to her chest, hugging it as hard as she could. "I am _so_ sorry I wasn't a very good daughter; I'm trying to make it up though; this research is in your name, signed by you, and when I finish the serum project I will dedicate that to you also, I promise! I…I know it isn't much but that's all I can do for now.

Forgive me; I love you. I will always love _you_ and the person you made me." She smiled and more tears spilled, even if she thought her eyes would have dried by now. "I miss you so much," she whispered in the end and "I will always miss you. You are still the best mom in the world." She chuckled a little and kissed the photo. Then she put it gently down. "I'm gonna go now okay? Goodnight…"

She was hungry.

She made the realisation as she was wiping at her tears and tried to look like she wasn't just crying her eyes out. She hadn't eaten anything after lunch and her stomach complaining. What with all the emotional hurt she felt, she disregarded it, but now it was too much. She looked at her watch; it read twelve. Ooh, midnight. And it was a full moon tonight. Heh, maybe when she'd get to the kitchen, she'd find out that the boss was in fact a werewolf who was eating all their food. And that would perfectly explain his mood swings, his unbelievable anger, his lashing out at the drop of the hat…

She didn't need another reason to start crying again, so she chose to laugh at the mental picture she gave herself: a hairy, bigger Xanxus, with his snout buried in the fridge, gorging himself with anything meat-related he could find. "Ha ha, I bet his main attack would be "bite"—he's way too lazy to use his claws! He'd snarl and he'd howl at the moonlight—ha ha, and he'd gnaw on raw food with his big sharp teeth!" She kept laughing and snorting at the things she was imagining, all till her mind wandered to the "animal instincts" section, especially when it reached the mating season. She blushed and smothered her laugh as she kept walking to the kitchen.

When she reached it, the lights were out; naturally, no one but her and Lussuria would eat at this time. She nonchalantly reached for the light switch, before she even entered the room…but there was something out of the ordinary in the air. A faint foreign scent reached her nose. She had no idea what it could be, but it resembled that of an…animal? And then noises of something fighting something else were heard. Sounds of an animal maybe chasing a smaller one…?

She froze. Wait just a minute now, she was only joking earlier! She didn't really want to see a werewolf Xanxus—he'd bite her head off. Literally! She started shaking with fear. Just the thought was scaring enough to stop her hand mid-air. The funny image in her mind turned sinister: claws and teeth, bathed in blood, wanting more. She shivered. Oh god oh god oh god, what was she thinking!? It was preposterous. Xanxus was a human being and not a supernatural one. A human, with no claws or pointy teeth. Right…

She leaned a little forward, trying to see if she could make out anything in the dark. She feared to look but she had to; she only wished she didn't come across two shinning eyes, staring right at her despite the dark all around her. She gulped but kept with her motion…until she finally looked inside. There was no light anywhere around her; the window was open, but the air felt stale. She searched with her eyes for any indication that someone else was there with her, to verify this anxious feeling in her gut that said she was not alone. She was not alone…

The longer her eyes went about the room and chanced upon nothing, her heart was beating faster because that only meant…her heart stopped. Oh yes, it was there: that pair of golden animalistic eyes staring at her, visible due to the moonlight, reflecting it. When her heart started again, it was racing, as if to make up for the lost time! Paralyzed by fear, she felt like she didn't reach for the switch, she just fell on it.

As the lights flooded her senses she came across the most uncanny, unbelievable, impossible sight: there was a white lion on their kitchen floor and it was ravaging a raw stake. It was stared at her intensely, as it licked its face. Its tongue was huge and the little she could see of its teeth, they were sharp and…this was real. This was an actual lion. There was a lion, in their kitchen, in the middle of the night.

_It could be an illusion_, the very logical part of her brain marked_, but there is no way in hell I'm gonna test it_.

She'd frozen on the spot, hand on switch and eyes trained on the beast; she waited for the creature to show any signs of mood. It didn't stop staring, forgetting the stake; it was making her more nervous than she'd ever been in her whole life! It opened its mouth; her heart stopped, yet her body was ready for flight. And then, the lion…yawned, and went back to its stake, completely ignoring her.

Her mouth dropped open and for a long moment she couldn't remember where she was and why—it all felt like a nightmare. When she realised it was real though, after pinching herself hard enough to draw blood, her heart hammered in her chest and her feet once more drove her to bolding position; her mind though was too fascinated by the impossibility of her situation and it just wouldn't give the order! Instead, her knees gave out—barely leaning on the wall for support. She didn't fall thankfully, even if said knees bent for a moment.

When she straightened, her heartbeat was all she could hear, like drums on a sacrificial night, the ones she saw in movies with savages. She swallowed, but even that she felt it was difficult to do. _Run away, damn you_, she thought to herself panicked. _Run. Away_, she repeated and finally, her brain worked; with the utmost care, she backtracked. One, two; one, two; one, two…when the animal really didn't pay any attention at her whatsoever and she was a safe distance, she finally turned around and ran like hell!

It wasn't until five minutes later that she stopped running, breathless, tears of joy and fear in her eyes: she was scared of what might have happened to her, but at the same time she was thrilled she got out of there alive. Alive! And without a scratch…but the problem of this whole experience wasn't the animal itself, but the fact someone had brought it there! Who in their right minds—…? Oh dear lord, that was it! No one in this house, and she meant no one at all, was in their right minds. That was the point: shit like these would always happen because they were completely insane!

Not at all flattering for her who repeatedly chose them over more sane, kinder people.

She shook her head, whimpering. Why in the good lord's name would anyone think a lion in their kitchen was a nice touch? There was a big leap to make from assassin to "I want a pet frigging lion"! She took many deep, long, calming breaths; she was still shaking all over and heart was pounding. The breaths helped a little but she was still very upset. She looked around to orient herself, still short of breath. Man, she should start working out or something, she could barely breath and she only ran for five minutes—and she wasn't even going full speed at times.

When she stopped berating herself, she looked up to see a familiar door in front of her. Without realising, she had found herself in front of Squalo's bedroom. It was clear to her now: she trusted him the most out of everyone in this house. Because, maybe he wasn't the strongest, but he always treated her the same no matter what, valued the things she did for him and took care of her in his own crazy, bizarre way. He was the closest thing she ever had to a friend or a brother. And a very deep, instinctive part of her always knew that.

She rapped her fingers against his door and waited the reply; when nothing came, she did it harder."Squalo," she asked softly, too? When she was met with silence for the second time, she started getting annoyed; after all the wonderful and beautiful thoughts she had just had for him, this happens? She shook her head and decided to switch to offense: she casually burst into his room, like she owned the place and closed the door behind her. She scanned it as quickly as she could—she found what she was looking for as a bundle on the bed, covered from head to toe by the covers and nothing but some long strands of silver hair were visible.

She smirked; she ran to him and promptly jumped on top of him. "Ah! You crazy bitch! What, what do you want? And get off me!"

She kindly obliged him, dragging the incredibly soft-looking blanket with her, as she sat next to him. She could see him fighting with the idea and hear him grumble about her being intrusive and "the devil" but she didn't waver. She welled up with courage and said in one breath: "I know you will never believe this, but it's true and there is a lion in our house—the kitchen specifically and it's not stuffed or a toy and I swear to god I'm not joking."

He looked at her shocked. "There's a what in our where?"

"A lion, in our kitchen. A big, living, breathing one. It was eating a raw stake. And it was white!"

Squalo started…but never finished the word that was about to leave his mouth. He looked to be thoughtful. "Are you sure it was a white one?"

"Yes! And it had these big scary eyes and-!"

He stood up immediately, pulling her hand harshly to make her mimic him. She felt like he had just dislocated her shoulder! "We're going to the boss right now," he ordered and reached for his shirt. He was naked on top and she could even see where his prosthetic arm started and where the real ended; she could also see the scars from years of fighting and the ones she herself had treated not too long ago. "VOOOOOOOI! Don't ever make that screwed up face again or I'll slice you up!"

His shouting snapped her out of whatever thoughts had crept inside her head and she realised she had indeed been making a very pathetic face; without controlling it, she appeared as if she was sorry for him. How unacceptable. She scolded herself again but stood ramrod straight, looking at him in the eye. "Shall we?"

He buttoned up his cardigan and nodded; together they marched down to the boss's bedroom. They both stood directly outside of the big wooden door and knocked at the same time. No response came. They tried again, but nothing was heard.

"Ugh, why are you all so difficult to wake?"

"We aren't difficult to wake; in fact we wake up pretty easily. What's difficult is to get up or allow anyone in when we just want to sleep."

"All he does is sleep! I can't see why sleep is so important to him anyway."

"You can't understand, if we have to explain it to you…"

She rolled her eyes; "whatever" that look she gave him meant and she just opened the door, like she had done before; Squalo felt hairs fall from the mere shock. "What the _hell do you think you're doing, get back here_!" Still, he followed her inside. They found themselves face-to-face with a very angered and very awake Xanxus. "B-boss?"

"What the hell do you think-?"

"There is a lion in the house," she blurted out before he could be angered any further and closed her eyes shut! She expected a tirade of emotions to hit her full force but instead all she got was…silence. His sole reaction was: "Huh?"

She shook her head like crazy. "A lion, there's a white lion in the house, it was in the-…"

She stopped talking; she stood perfectly still. Squalo's eyes widened in shock and followed; Xanxus just kept being there, sitting up in his bed, watching the events unfold: the lion she claimed was in the house just came waltzing in through the door, leisurely making its way around the room. She was so scared she was trembling. When she felt the animal's snout graze her leg, she almost fainted by the mental picture of the lion eating it. Squalo held her up, but she was too far gone to stand anymore…he allowed her to slowly fall on the floor as she tried to calm her rapidly beating heart.

She followed the animal with her eyes and watched as it made its way next to the boss's bed, lay down and yawned—showing all its sharp teeth. She cringed; she started airing herself, but not too successfully. "Th-that…that's the, the lion I ju…I just told you about…"

He turned to Squalo, who was still relaxed, despite the beast's presence. "Why is he here?"

"VOOOOI! The hell do you mean boss? If anyone, I thought _you_ would know!"

The fact Xanxus referred to the beast as "he" in that tone and the way Squalo suggested not only did they both know this lion, but it was somehow the boss's responsibility didn't go unnoticed. But she was still too weak to react at the new information. Because the lion had just touched her and its teeth were so huge and it was an actual jungle animal in their house! She'd never seen it nor heard anyone talk about it before so why and how did it come here? Why no one told her?

"Get your ass off my carpet;" he commanded but then pointed to the animal "Don't bother him and Bester won't attack you…"

"B-b-b-b-b-b-but he's a lion" she stuttered as she was lamely doing as he said; she almost tripped "and you never mentioned a pet before and how will we keep him fed and he's so huge-!"

"I said don't bother him and you'll be fine…now shoo, both of you, I wanna sleep; Bester you be quiet too."

The lion yawned as a reply, and put its head down on its front legs. Gawking at the animal and how it obeyed Xanxus's orders, she was dragged out by a very tired Squalo.


	22. A lion and a birthday

**A/N**: I hope you all had amazing holidays! :*

* * *

><p>.<p>

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The next few days, many things that she never thought possible happened: she saw a lion bypassing her many a time in its quest to feed—it never attacked her, no; it just went straight for the fridge. Xanxus was being as mean as usual and he had her cooking for him in the company of the beast, but said beast never really tried to eat her, as she thought it would: it only growled at her so she could give it food or stand aside and let it eat. Christmas even came and went but she didn't even realise. Even her problem with her research and Nono was never addressed again. The lion was keeping her too busy, along with the paper she'd found and even when Squalo suggested there might be a party she was allowed to attend, she had no time for it.

Not that she was friendly with the lion…at least not too much and not right away: it took her a week not to wince, shudder and generally be so afraid she could barely walk in its presence. It was a damn big lion! And it was so imposing and threatening. She could understand why Xanxus wanted it – it made him look so badass and fearless, having a pet lion – but she couldn't for the life of her begin to fathom how this idea came to him. Though apparently everyone else knew and never told her, just like that secret they kept when she "spied" on them. She figured those two might have been related, but she couldn't make the connection, so she stopped caring.

But so scared was she of the animal in their home, she actively went out of her way to write down a bucket list of some sort and of course, a will. She actually wrote a will and signed it and made sure if it was ever found it held up as legal document. She had no idea how to do that though, so she had consulted the internet, which told her how to do it. Her will was short: "everything I own goes to my late aunt Lucretia's son and Squalo, equally divided—money, belongings etc. All of my clothes shall go to welfare. Everything I developed or am developing when I meet my bitter end, goes to Nono's scientists. No exceptions." Not that this would be honoured by the Varia, but she hoped at least the first one was.

Her bucket list on the other hand, was much larger and more like wishful thinking, but she couldn't help making one.

There was a day, it was the 27th of December, that Bester snuck up on her; it hadn't done it in order to eat her, just scare her and naturally it worked. He'd stalked her for two hallways worth the distance, when it finally roared…! She let out the shrillest and loudest of screams and took off running in its opposite direction! Laughs were heard from behind it, as Squalo Bel and Lussuria were watching the whole while, purposefully being silent.

But as she was gone from their sight, Lussuria noticed a folded piece of paper had fallen on the carpet; it was a page of a notebook but it had writing on it. As he inspected it closer and unfolded it, he realised it was written on both sides and in her hand writing. It even bore a title: "My bucket list or Things I want to but never will do". He smirked. He struck gold! Carefully hiding it from the other two, or at least doing it inconspicuously enough not to spark their interest as well, he left immediately; he had some reading to do!

Later that day, Francesca had another run in with the fearsome beast. "KYAH!" She was short but loud when Bester touched her calf with his snout and urged her forward. She became completely immobile, apart from her legs where the lion was touching her, and let it push her. "Wh-wh-wh-what do you…w-w-w-w-want…?"

It only made a small sound and kept pushing her forward; was it leading her somewhere? She turned a little to her right, just so she could see the beast, and it was surprisingly calm when it used its head to make her move where it wanted. Suddenly, she felt like she didn't have to be so scared; it was only leading her somewhere and it wasn't at the lower part of the house – so it could eat her unobstructed – but towards the living quarters. She stopped being so goddamn rigid and walked properly; the lion sensed the difference and instead of pushing her, it came to her side and started walking next to her.

Wow. What an otherworldly experience! She was walking side to side with a wild animal. Pet or not, it was a freaking lion and it only listened to Xanxus. Oh wait a minute; he could be leading her to its master. Hum, that made sense. No matter though—she was walking next to a lion. That was all kinds of awesome! She stuck her chest out a little prouder and allowed herself to smile, only a little. And very timidly. Just enough so that the animal would not consider it an insult or what not. Then she decided it would be even cooler if she was all serious and stuff so she lost the smile and imitated her boss's indifferent look.

Ten minutes later, the lion stopped her walking by going in front of her, almost tripping her due to her bad reflexes. She saw it had sat, surprisingly it didn't lie down, facing a door—its destination. She understood both where she was and what the lion wanted…a bath. The lion wanted a bath. She looked at the creature quizzically but it only made a low sound. _Okay_, she thought perplexed and opened the door for the animal, as she walked to the side to let it pass. It pounced—and then all hell broke loose! She heard a scream and a muffled gunshot from inside the bathroom and she swore the lion really made a war cry as it lunged on whoever was in there!

She panicked right away; who the hell was the lion trying to kill? And why!? Would it turn on her, too? She should go, go, go, go, _go_! But at the same time she really wanted to know what was going on. What if the lion hadn't gone berserk and there was an actual enemy in there? She had to know…her feet were trying to take her away but her head was fixated upon that open door! She battled with herself while all the horrible sounds of carnage could be heard from inside the room. She decided she'd look but only when everything sounded to be over; hopefully the beast would have been satisfied by then.

Three seconds later, all cries of pain or help had abated; she side-stepped twice: one to the left, turned 90 degrees and then again to the left and was now facing the room. What she came across was something she did not expect: there was a now dead man lying on their floor, mangled; there was a gun with a silencer just a couple of centimetres away from his right hand and, mixed with blood, there were…documents all around him. Some were torn, some were bitten, some were cut in half but they were all familiar. She bent down to read what they were but she didn't have to read one word; the moment the documents came in focus, she saw her handwriting all over the many papers—this was her research!

She gaped and stared in sheer insult and disgust; why was someone trying to steal her research? Or read it in a bathroom, whatever; why was someone trying to do that? No one knew what it was about other than herself, her late aunt, Nono and Xanxus…! Oh dear lord, was Xanxus-wait, no that made no sense, he could just walk in and take it. Ah! Did that mean Nono was the one trying to-oh gad damn it of course he was, there was the whole issue with this! And everything was now bloodied and torn to pieces…

She fell on her knees, gaping still; she could not, would not believe this. This was her first copy! Yes, she had back up, of course she had back up but…this was all in her aunt and her hand! They poured over this for hours of their lives! If she summed all the hours up, it would make up weeks…she felt despair; she didn't want to lose this! Her hands felt like lead and paralyzed as she picked them up one by one trying to stack them again. She'd figure the order out later.

She had no idea how long it had been that she was there on her knees picking everything up but she stopped only when she was finished. She turned to Bester then: the lion was lying on the floor but its head was up, alert in case anything else happened while she was distracted. At some point she thought she saw him attack the person on the floor again. It had blood around its mouth, mane and some on its paws, claws hidden now. It lay there, guarding her, proud and dangerous. Just as lost as she had been when she first encountered the sight, but even more empty, she watched the lion.

"Thank you Bester," she said breathlessly. He made a sound that must have meant something between "no problem" and "whatever". And then she did something she never thought she would: reaching out too slow, she finally touched the mane of the animal and dragged her hand carefully. She stroke him. And what's more, he didn't bite her for it! He just purred, actually purred, when she repeated the gesture. A surprised chuckle escaped her lips. "Good lion, good lion; good Bester."

After another minute or so, it finally registered with her: she had to report this to the boss—or someone! She shoot up like a spring and turned around…only to face the entire elite Varia unit staring at her. Even the boss was there and some people she didn't know. "Oh," she lamely said "you're here already; good, I won't have to look for you." She bent to gather all of her documents and then stood up again. "This man tried to steal my research. Or read it. I don't know. But Bester stopped him. Also, this was done by Nono, I'm almost sure because he had requested I give up my research a week ago so…I'll be leaving now."

She was speaking as if programmed, certainly lifeless; it was the shock, everyone knew and opened a path for her to leave. Xanxus eyed her but even that seemed to have no affect on her. As she made her exit, they all noted that Bester actually lifted himself from the floor and followed after her. If Xanxus was annoyed, he didn't show it; instead, he started investigating the "scene of the crime". They'd also have to check everywhere for possible points of entrance and of course somehow identify the man: just a face was not enough. Also, her lab should also be examined but he knew that was the first place she'd go and the first thing she'd do, so he'd wait for her report.

.

. .

She fast-paced all the way to her lab, the lion not just following her but also guiding her to the direction of her lab by the shortest route possible and not the long one she liked taking. Never noticing these things, she found herself in her laboratory, making an inventory of her things in no time. She checked everything. The first thing that was brought to her attention though was the break in. She was always paranoid, so it was a given she would have some fail-safes and it was them that made the break-in obvious: even if the strings were still in place, using the UV light she'd installed, she could see hand and fingerprints all over her counters and things. She'd soaked some of her things with a substance that could only be seen in such light and she was the only one who knew which ones they were. That was the "trap" she'd set mostly in case one from the Varia was trying to sneak a peek, definitely not this.

She sighed; everything else was in order, nothing was taken apart from the research papers. Oh yeah? Well, fuck that guy! She now had to clean everything up, place the traps back in place and start writing the goddamn research from scratch again! There was no way she would leave it without a hand-written copy—her aunt always kept and loved them. She had a whole file of these, she had vowed to keep it growing and now her last hand script was—ugh! Bloody. And in pieces. And she just lost the last thing her aunt had left just for her and—

"God fucking damn it!" She slapped the documents on top of her metal counter, knocking her microscope down. The lion growled—and she jumped! "Bester! You…followed me?"

It actually answered her, with another growl, and then trotted to her; he took her sleeve in its mouth, piercing it with his fangs but carefully missing her skin, as he started dragging her towards somewhere away from there. "What is it, where do you want to go?" He kept dragging her away; when she obliged, it stopped and simply walked next to her again. Slower than before, he led her to another bathroom. Her eyes widened and she froze, but the lion went behind her and shoved her forward. Oh this once he wanted her first? Then maybe there were no more enemies. She slowed her heart down and opened the door…to find the room completely empty. _Oh thank God_, she sighed her thoughts away and went for the tub. Bester leapt in it. The way he positioned himself, he showed his dirty paws and mouth. "I get it, I'll make you as good as new."

And she did; and from that moment forward, she was never afraid of him again, not really. Surely, she would jump when Bester purposefully scared her but he had somehow grown to be her own personal protector…that was so cute! He would escort her around the house, he would keep her company the long hours she spent in her lab and even when she went to administer Xanxus's meds the lion wouldn't stay with him unless it was very late. Xanxus, who was still not speaking with her and even sent Squalo to take her report about the break-in, was very neutral about the whole thing surprisingly, only giving the animal a few annoyed glances. But Xanxus knew he had to talk to her so on the 30th of December, he called for her. She went with Bester following.

"You say in your report, and you've marked on this improvised map of your lab, the exact route the man followed at least after he messed with some of your things. That was both before and after he stole your research; how can you be so sure?"

_Jesus, not even one word of welcoming_. "I uh, have my ways." She really didn't want to tell him, but if that look on his face was any indication, sooner or later she'd have to.

"Share them. Now."

And that settled it. "I've always been paranoid enough to have many measures of this sort; the one he stumbled upon was my trap of UV liquid. I soak certain things in that, which of course isn't corrosive, and place them in many prominent spots all over the lab. Anyone who doesn't know, they get it on their hands. It stays for a couple of days. When I was finished with Bester, I looked at the hands of the dead man and he had it. And then I went back to the lab and marked the route. Then I made the map and wrote it down and finally cleaned up."

"That is…actually smart."

_Thanks for the compliment; screw you for the surprise_, she thought annoyed.

"Install it in the whole house."

"Um…" she started a little hesitant. "It wouldn't work in the whole house. There are too many people coming and going and a lot of substances to go around that may shine under UV light. It has to be a controlled environment. I can put it in _your_ room if you like…and in safe places where no one is supposed to go under normal circumstances."

"…" He just watched her. "Fine," he said after a while. "Start from my room. Put it in the safe house, too."

"Very well…"

She moved to go, fetch all the needed things; she noticed Bester didn't follow. As she was about to exit the room, Xanxus's deep voice stopped her. "And if you ever hide things like Nono asking for your research again, I'll fucking kill you."

She didn't even dare looking back. Though she did want to say it was practically his fault for repeatedly telling her to go away and then not wanting anything to do with her. But she resisted.

It took her both "today" and "tomorrow" to install her traps; it was a big house and she found there were more than one places people weren't supposed to go in. And let's not forget the entirety of the safe house…it was time-consuming, hard work. Odious, all very specific, but certainly dirty and long. She had even worn her ugly clothes, as Lussuria referred to them, to make it easier on her. When she finished, she was in the safe house. She hadn't brought anything to eat with her, but she knew there were supplied there, so she went to the fridge. She sulked.

Today was her birthday. And her aunt's birthday. 31st of December, one day before the new year. The transitional day. He transitional woman. And what would she eat on this day? Canned food she hated. No, she refused. This was her birthday. She'd eat whatever she wanted! And do whatever she wanted. Now that her assignment was over she'd go watch her favourite movie or read her newest book and order a big fat chocolate cake; then she'd shut herself in her room and eat to her heart's content and store the rest in her fridge because there was no way she'd be giving to anyone! All this time she was Varia no one celebrated anything anyway, so it must be a private thing for them. Or worse, they never invited her.

Stubbornly refusing to cry on this day, she packed the remainder of her tools and exited the safe house from the top floor. She went to her room and took a shower; then she'd report to Xanxus and be done for the day. She chose to wear her prettiest work outfit, the one Lussuria always commended, and then went to the boss…

But he wasn't there. Wow, breaking news: Xanxus left his room. But he must have known that she'd have to report to him…quizzical still, she searched for him a little but he was nowhere to be found: not the kitchen, not the dining room…not even the garden, in case he followed Bester outside. Huh. Weird. Thinking of it, she didn't bump into anyone in the hallways. What the hell? Had they all disappeared? Oh god, it was New Year's Eve! Goddamn it. She bet they were out. Of course they were out, it was New Year's Eve…and she took too long. Maybe if she went to her room she'd find a note with the place they went.

Sulking even more than before, truly sad, she walked to her room. It wasn't as if they'd know and wish her happy birthday but if they were there, she could shove her indifference in their face! Now they were gone. When she reached her room she found no note but one lion. "Bester? Oh…they went out and left you alone, too? Is that it?" She went closer to the animal and started petting it; she had come to appreciate its calmness. "Are we both just two forgotten pets?" She'd come to terms with that fact. "Yes? Well then, let's have fun together! How about I get you a big chunk of meat and I order some delicious cake for myself, eh?"

But the lion did not agree like it usually did; he just stood up, bored, and pushed her forward with his head. "Oh I get it, you want to eat? Let's go."

But it didn't lead her to the kitchen like she thought; when she almost took the first turn wrong, it pushed her to another direction. Puzzled, she let him lead. "Seeing I have none other, you'll be my date for tonight, so lead on I guess," she admitted, curious to where her was taking her. Every now and then, the sneaky lion even changed its course and she could no longer guess where they were headed. But, some twenty minutes after, as if told by a higher power, the lion took the exact route: through the east wing towards the centre and the main Hall. It was dark and almost looked eerie.

But it was there Bester stopped, growled a little and decided to head back. When she went to follow, he growled again, this once aggressively. And then he was gone! "How…?"

But she couldn't question anything for long because suddenly light came from the Hall! Music and sounds of conversation flooded her senses and she had to close her eyes from the brightness of it all. She made shade with her hand and slowly opened them again…only to see their main hall overflowing with numerous guests! Decorations of Christmas that she swear weren't there a day ago hang on the walls and windows and there was even a tree somewhere at the background. Everyone wore their best and danced to the festive music or spoke loudly, just to be heard. Drinks and foods were passed all around and everyone was having a good time.

Just as she turned to have a better view of the place, Lussuria appeared right in front of her! "Happy birthday Franny-chan!" He hugged and kissed her with conviction, as if to make a point. He didn't let go of her for a long time, too. "Welcome to 22 and many happy returns*! Here, I got you a gift."

She was left gawking. Oh, someone knew and even got her a present! She was about to thank Bester for telling her there was a party, but maybe she should thank Lussuria for telling Bester to get her. "Ha ha, you're so surprised; just open it!"

"Thank you Lussuria," she said even before seeing the gift "you're so kind!"

"Mama always looks after her daughter dear; now open your present," he said excited, clapping.

She felt tears come to her eyes; she wouldn't be spending it alone. And she'd get a present, too…she smiled through unshed tears and opened it. She gawked again. "This is…wow, very expensive. And colourful." An ostentatious ring of gold band and metallic feathers, all in different colours, was the gift in the small box. One feather was purple, the other blue, the other yellow and it reminded her so much of the man who bought it, she felt guilty for wanting to try it. But she did anyway. "It's very beautiful. Thank you."

"Oooh you like it! I was so worried you wouldn't! I'm very glad."

He hugged her again. When he let go, he noticed Levi and Bel were around her: the one was moved beyond reason and the other grinned even wider than normal. "Happy birthday Francesca and many happy returns! I wish you all the happiness in the world," Levi was the first to wish her, hugging her bone-crushing tight again. "I found out about your birthday just today, so I couldn't get you a gift, but I am willing to part with my-!"

"No need," she said hastily, stopping him "I am more than content with your wishes. Your wishes are fine."

"Oh? Is that so? So you don't want my gift, too?"

That coming from Bel wasn't good. But she had to ask. "What gift?" and she immediately regretted it because he actually threw her a knife! Levi and Lussuria protected her thankfully, but some of the onlookers saw him and either laughed or seemed shocked. "Happy birthday; keep the knife. Though you should have let it pierce you; it would have sentimental value with your own blood on it."

"Thanks I guess," she muttered as Bel left. "Anyway! You guys, thank you so much; I needed this." She kissed the two men on the cheek and linked her arms through theirs. "Let's go have some fun now!"

"Finally, she said it! Mama started to worry you'd be glum for the rest of the night." They shared a knowing smile and she was urged forward by both men…

"Oh hey, happy birthday," came Squalo's voice from far away and started coming closer "I heard it's today. New Year's Eve, eh? You're lucky! You always get a party." She chuckled as he let a booming laugh. "And the presents, too, must be a pile; though I didn't have the time to get you anything."

She had to unlink both her arms to wave "no". "I don't mind, really; it's ok."

"I'm afraid that's my fault; I got so caught up in the planning of the party and finding the perfect present, I forgot to tell everyone." All three turned to Lussuria. "What?"

"Did you just imply the reason we're holding this party is for her?" Squalo almost laughed at the thought. "How did you get Mammon to agree to that?"

"Well, we're holding this party for many reasons; her birthday one of them. It's good to celebrate one of ours! I'll be making the announcement just three minutes before the year changes."

"Oh, it's only eleven," Levi noted, looking at his watch. "You are very good at planning these, Lussuria."

"Why the surprise?"

"Wait, forget Mammon; how the hell did you convince the boss?" Squalo had a point. Considering the way he treated her lately, too it seemed almost unlikely.

"Like I said, many reasons; besides, have you noticed Bester?"

He said the last sentence like it had another meaning than the obvious. What, the lion following her had anything to do with Xanxus—he put it up to it or something? No, it sounded funny even in her head. Though the uncomfortable and scolding look Squalo shot Lussuria, followed by his "voi" did make her thing she might be right, at least for the first part. "What does Bester have to do with anything?"

"Nothing, don't listen to him. Pets and owners are two very different things," Squalo snapped; Levi just sighed wistfully.

Wistfully? What the hell? "Guys, you do realize you sound very weird to me right-?"

"Oh never mind dear." Lussuria nudged her with his elbow playfully and shoved her onto Levi. "Go dance now! Levi, you'll do her the honours, right?"

"Of course! Let's go dance, birthday girl."

She chuckled. "I don't see why not. I'll be honoured, too." She gave a short bow and turned to Squalo. "You're next." He rolled his eyes but he didn't complain; this was the first time after returning to Italy, he saw her with a genuine smile on her face. He shrugged and let her think and do as she pleased. "And then you, Lussuria!"

"I'm hurt I wasn't your first choice."

"I figured you'd want to dance with some pretty men yourself." She winked and allowed Levi to take her to the space that most couples danced.

And 56 minutes later, just as he'd promised, Lussuria stopped the music and stood in the centre of the room. He was the one dancing with her, so he dragged her with him. Couples stopped dancing, people stopped talking and everyone looked at the flamboyant man in the centre of the hall while also glancing at their watches. "Dear guests, thank you so much for coming here this evening; we are more than pleased to have you all.

But before we start the countdown, let us celebrate another happy occasion: Francesca," he hugged her with one arm "the newest addition in our team and most incredible scientist is turning twenty two today!"

Applause and "aw" were heard from the guests. "Let us all raise our glasses to wish her a very happy birthday!"

A collective wish of "happy birthday" was spoken simultaneously from everyone; it followed a moment of silence for the drinks to be consumed. Francesca smiled like an idiot and had to be nudged by Lussuria to say a loud "thank you!" overly excited. "isn't she adorable? She even came straight from work, didn't have time to change; we tired her on her special day."

Some small laughs ensued and all the polite follow-ups till he started talking again. "But enough of her; she'll be so last year in TEN" everyone started counting down with him "NINE, EIGHT, SEVEN, SIX, FIVE, FOUR, THREE, TWO, ONE, HAPPY NEW YEAR!"

Shiny confetti were released from some contraptions on the ceiling, raining down upon them! Confetti of all shapes and sizes – stars, glitter sprinkled hearts, large or small ones – getting in everyone's hair and clothes and drinks even, but they all rejoiced, shouting along and whistling! Others clapped, others cat-called. But everyone was merry…well, all but Xanxus that is who finally made an appearance. And who other than her was on his arm. Silvana. But, Francesca swore she wouldn't care, wouldn't let anyone get her down. She stole a glance at her hand, seeing the beautiful new ring. Yeap, no one for no reason at all.

When they approached, she saw Silvana had cake in her hands that she offered to her. She took it gratefully. Also, she was the first one to talk. "Happy birthday Francesca; I had no idea it was today. You might have said."

"Thank you Silvana," she replied with a true smile and a bit of chocolate on her lips "but there was no need; I don't even know how Lussuria found out!"

"I always make it my business to know of these things dear," he replied and laughed.

But to those news, Silvana was left truly taken aback. "You told _no one_? That sounds a little…cold. Aren't you colleagues? You even stay here occasionally."

_Occasionally, _she questioned incredulous in her head? That's what they told others concerning her house arrest? Tch, very nice. But no, she would not get pissed, she wouldn't.

"I didn't think of it like that," she laughed, though that one was faked but she kept eating her cake "I just didn't want them to think they had to buy me things and the like. Just their wishes are enough."

Once again, Silvana seemed genuine in her reaction, looking at Francesca as if she was some adorable teddy bear. "Isn't that cute? Well, now you got everyone's wishes; you should feel special."

Her mood picked up again. "No, not really. It was the polite thing to do…"

Xanxus snorted. "Feel special," he snapped "_I _got no party."

His comment attracted the surprise of everyone, but Lussuria didn't let it be taken too seriously. "You also didn't get to wish her; come boss, tell her happy birthday."

"Even boss didn't know?" Squalo appeared out of nowhere. "I swear, the fact she had her birthday today was a better kept secret than the cause of death of Pope John Paul the first."

Bel came and contradicted him. "No, we know how he died; they didn't let Nono protect him and he was killed."

"Yes, but the public doesn't know. They told them it was natural causes." They all snorted simultaneously. "As if."

"Why are we talking about the death of a pope? It's a happy day, say happy things!" Lussuria scolded everyone. "Like birthday wishes, boss don't you think?"

He went to speak but Levi interjected surprised. "It is indeed a wonder how none of us knew her birthday was today—err, yesterday; that. Anyway, I thought I was the last one to find out when I saw Lussuria wishing her an hour ago, but the boss didn't know-?"

"I never said he didn't know, he just hasn't wished her yet," Lussuria through oil in the fire. Everyone looked at Xanxus amazed; even Francesca dared steal a glance at him.

"What am I saying? Please forgive me boss; of course you knew! You're the boss, you know everything about us. I am unforgivable for thinking otherwise. I shall take any punishment you see-!"

"Do me the favour and don't speak of punishment, please," the birthday girl, as he'd called her, added hastily and grabbed his hands before he did anything to himself.

Silvana disregarded the craziness around her and turned to her date. "Xanxus, did you get her a present, too?"

He raised an eyebrow. "Too?"

"Well, look at her finger; if that amazing ring isn't a gift from Lussuria I am no judge of people!"

"Ho ho, Silvana dear, you have a sharp eye; yes, it is my gift to her. The best gift she ever received, no?" he turned to her. "you loved it, didn't you?"

She'd just put the last large bite of her cake in her mouth. "Oh yes, indeed; best gift ever," she said still eating a little.

Silvana laughed politely. "I bet; it is very expensive!"

She gulped down, finally free to speak. She wiped her mouth with a napkin. "Not because of that; it's the thought that counts. Admittedly, it is impressive and I am grateful but it's the gesture of giving me such a thoughtful present. I mean, I would have been fine with a bouquet of flowers or, or just a box of chocolates! Ooh, yes chocolates that would be nice; I love chocolate. Who doesn't love chocolate? I'd be willing to-!"

"Geez, I get it, okay; I'll get you a damn box of chocolates."

"Oh I'm sorry, I didn't—ha ha, maybe you're right, chocolate gets me hyperactive."

"And fat; this is the third piece you're eating, don't think I haven't seen you!"

"Well, I'm sorry but chocolate relaxes me! Besides, so what if I get fat?"

"You'll be fat."

"I'll still be cute."

"Who'd ever said you're cute now?"

"AH! You mongrel-!"

"JUST SHUT UP!" the two people bantering froze and everyone turned to face him. He just stared at each and every one of them as if they offered him some sort of insult. He let go of Silvana – more like made her let go – and stood straight. He'd never done this before, shouting so loud when there were other people around, so something must have really troubled him. But what? Their speaking to each other? No one dared ask in fear he'd go off again. When he himself thought it was safe to speak again, he turned to Francesca. "Happy birthday," he snubbed, as if swearing and took off. He left people behind looking dumbfounded.

"What was that?" Francesca was the first one to find her voice again.

"I've no idea," Silvana replied, looking incredulous and very annoyed. "he'd been…relatively alright all night till now…wait, can I make an honest question?"

"Sure," the scientist immediately said, curious to what she was going to ask/

She seemed to be battling with herself."Is he…always like that?"

"Like what," everyone inquired?

"Well, like shouting and bursting out and shooting fireballs out of nowhere! And acting like a spoiled child…"

"Oh." The men nodded. "Then yeah, yes, he is he sort of…he is."

She snorted. "In that case honey, he's all yours; you can have him. I mean, I know I was being a little possessive and everything and a week ago or whenever I talked to you flippantly but…I had no idea. I'm sorry. And that was the first time he ever showed his true colours to me like that. Is he always so unbalanced towards you?" She nodded. "Then why do you like him? I mean, I was sincerely jealous of you, being so close to him all the time; and usually smart women don't flock around him – and now I know why – so I was all the more worried. But now? Wow, I'll…I'll send you some xanax through mail, put it in his coffee. Because, honestly he's off the deep end. I never liked moody men anyway; he just always seemed very composed to me. But, I'm seriously giving up. All yours."

"it's not like I want him anyway."

"Okay, this is enough for me; goodbye," Squalo stated and turned about immediately; Lussuria waved him away.

"If you don't even like him then why in earth-?"

"I never said I didn't like him, I just don't want him; I don't want him looking my way, too. As you said, I'm a smart woman and I know what follows his interest. I'm neither mentally nor physically capable at the moment of following that. Not at all. So yeah, even if there was some crazy alternate reality that he'd look my way, which he never will, I don't want him to. It's only trouble."

"Oh she finally admitted it." Lussuria exclaimed and rushed to hug Francesca! "thank you Silvana for making her say it."

Silvana rolled her eyes, grabbed Francesca's hand and removed her. "Now if you'll excuse us, we'll go find some eligible men to dance with."

The rest of the night passed in a blur; Silvana was a very good person to be with at parties and the two women had an understanding neither of them had ever hoped. Getting things off of their chests did them a lot of good. They danced and laughed and had fun with Squalo and other men Francesca had just only met. She never knew going at parties could be so invigorating! She only felt like that at rare occasions when she was with her aunt, like their birthday and she was very pleased the tradition did not go awry because of her predicament.

When all was said and done, in seven o clock in the morning, all the tenants of the house remained in the kitchen, eating breakfast or drinking something to help them go to sleep. Francesca had brewed tea for all, even if only two more drank. "Oh hey, where's Mammon? I didn't see him all day and night."

"Didn't want to come to the party," Lussuria explained "so Mammon remained upstairs in his room."

"Ooh…"

Suddenly Xanxus entered the kitchen, the only one missing, and she was made so nervous, she had the urge to stand at attention. "Where the hell did you find the blanket?"

The question was directed at her. So she answered. "My room; I was cold."

"But you never left the Hall."

How did he know that? "Indeed, I asked Levi and he fetched it for me." He kept looking at her harshly. "I did say "thank you"," she added in the end, like that was his problem. But it wasn't the boss rolled his eyes sighing exasperated. Okay what was up with him? The weirdness just came to a peak.

"Fix me something to eat!" it was said angrily, but he really had no reason to be angry. What was going on? She looked around for support or someone to wave their head as if it was just a part of him only she hadn't seen before, but everyone was looking away, pretending they saw nothing. She started fretting again.

Just then, Bester appeared out of nowhere at the threshold, strutted all the way to the woman and sat beside her. "Bester…? You want to eat, too?" she questioned the lion as she got up to the fridge, getting some butter, eggs and bacon out. The animal replied with a yawn and she knew it just wanted to be with people or something similar. She left it alone. "You want juice with your breakfast, boss?"

"Juice? Am I a toddler?" _Yes_, she answered inwardly. "Just bring me the food."

"As soon as it's ready…"

She turned her back on everyone; in that short time it took her to take out the frying pan, start the stove and focus till the butter melted to throw in the two eggs and strips of bacon, Xanxus had given the evil eye to everyone, making them disappear. She reached for a plate and emptied the pan's contents; when she turned to look at them, there was only her, him and the pet. "Where…?"

His head was dipped forward, but the scent of the butter drew him up. His eyes were barely open now. "Left; sleep."

She giggled. "You need some, too boss if you don't mind my saying; you speak in words, not sentences. And even for you, that is too lazy."

He had half a mind to smack her as she fuzzed with the plate, knife and fork but resisted; he was disturbed to realise his hand moved for her ass instead of a cheek or even an arm. And that did not signal discontent, that much was certain. He was even surprised to find her little quip about his laziness amusing. Well, drink does that to a person. "You're…spry. What'd you do—pact with a devil?"

She genuinely laughed and sat down not next to him, but the lion; she was three seats away. "I'm used to sleeping a few hours; besides, I'm running on adrenaline now." She started petting Bester. "You know, once you get to figure out his buttons, he's quite friendly!"

"Bester," he asked between mouthfuls? She nodded yes; he nodded no.

"Well, I think so; either that or a lion took a liking to me, which is very unlikely."

"You're the only female he encounters." He didn't explain any more than that but he was speaking in sentences again; what difference does food make on him…! She giggled at the thought, giggled for the second time and though she was sure he'd be barking at her to stop, surprisingly he said nothing. He must have been too tired for words, she mused.

Because she couldn't know the true reason of course, no one could; why he didn't mind her laughing and being girly, why he burst out at the party, why Bester started clinging on to her…he tried really hard not to think of it himself anyway. But the silence that spread in the room left him no other choice; why was she suddenly being so silent? She was either watching him eat, petting Bester or looking off into the distance and petting Bester. And all the eating made him wake so no matter how addled his mind might have been from the drink and the sleeplessness, his awareness was high.

When he was finished, she immediately removed the plate and poured water over it; she left it into the sink. She'd asked if he wanted seconds earlier to which he'd said no. "Just go to sleep, don't bother with the fucking dishes."

"O…okay." She wasn't going to wash them now anyway. She shrugged and did as he told her, but surprisingly they exited the same door. That was very odd; he made it a point to avoid her, what does he think? She'll just change routes midway? Or maybe he was just too tired even for that.

"So you're twenty two now, congratulations," he interrupted her thoughts; his expression was unreadable, in the contrary of hers with her evident surprise and red cheeks.

"Yes, thank you."

"I did know earlier, I was just too bored to bother," he explained as if that was any better. She looked at him funny; she had no idea where he was going with this statement. Miff her? Make her feel better? "but I do have a gift for you."

She stared, incredulous. "You do?" she was very confused by now.

"Yeah, Lussuria brought the matter to my attention half a week ago; he found some note he said or whatnot." Oh so that's where her bucket list went! And that's how Lussuria knew; wow, it made sense. "I decided to give you what you've been complaining about. A day out."

She suddenly stopped walking; she fell behind a few steps till Xanxus humoured her. He turned to look at her annoyed, but…she was just gobsmacked. Eyes wide but mouth barely parted, she was just looking at him. She could not believe it. "What? You don't-!"

"Thank you!"

Never has a person before caught him off guard, but her attack did; she was half a metre away one moment, and the next she had her hands around his neck. Hugging him. An eyebrow raised, in spite of her clearly not seeing it; he was more dubious of himself rather than her—she was a hugger, Squalo had established that. And despite the sudden movement, he could have easily avoided her. But for a split second, that one he had to make his decision, he thought "fuck it" and didn't even move, stopping his reflexes.

Why? What was happening to him?

"Thank you so much!" she let go of him and he saw tears in her eyes. Oh god no! "I…I don't know what else to say other than thank you, and thank you again; I am…so moved." She tried not to spill. "Thank you," she almost whispered in the end and put her hands over her mouth and nose; she took a deep breath like that. Looking away then, she recommenced walking, airing herself and holding her nose.

He smirked; finally, a reaction like him. "And that beats a simple expensive ring as a gift, doesn't it?"

"Are you kidding? Of c-…" In a fit of clarity she turned to look at him, in a whole new light. "You are very competitive boss, do you know that?"

"Isn't it better though?"

He was as humorous as before but she could feel the aggression seeping out. She smiled hastily. "Of course it is; you gave me the one thing I needed. Thank you."

"Whatever; chose whichever day you want: be back by ten."

"And I can do anything I want, right? Of course, so long as it doesn't conflict with Varia interests, that's a given."

"Yeah, yeah, you can, stop pestering me about it."

Ah finally; the world made sense again. Xanxus was being dismissive and in a hurry to stop her talking. There for a moment she thought he might have suffered a stroke by the sleeplessness. "You know, Silvana dumped you." Funny how every single time she thought of sleeplessness and Xanxus, she always somehow ended up thinking of Silvana.

"She did what now?"

"She did, she said she'll no longer go after you because of your…outburst earlier."

He laughed so sinisterly it was comical; she looked at him wide-eyed with hands raised in question. "She _told_ you that, did she? She'll no longer pursue me?"

"Yes, all of us. Well, Squalo had left, Lussuria was-!"

"First of all," he snubbed as he walked right in front of her all the good mood gone momentarily "stop being so casual about Squalo _or_ around him. He's not your anything; it gets on my nerves." He was so close to her, she bumped into him and he had to steady her. "Secondly, if she did say that then how lucky for you" he paused for a moment just to savour the panic all over her face before he supplemented "one person less to cook for. Weren't you the one who was threatening with a knife or something?"

She turned so red, she might have fainted! With equal surprise – though not equally showing it – both people realised he was still holding on to her; he just opened his hands to let her go. "That, that was unfortunate and it was just my nerves and I do not dislike her I just…"

"I don't wanna hear about it; now go to your room and let me sleep." Without realising when, they'd arrived in front of his bedroom. "Bester…" The lion distinctively turned to the woman and snuggled its snout up to her. "whatever. 'Night."

The door shut to their faces and she was left alone. Very puzzled, almost convinced she was hallucinating because of the drinking, she trotted back to her room, with Bester inexplicably acting like a cat.

But when the door shut from the other side, and it was Xanxus who was left alone, he couldn't stand himself; he kept thinking about what the hell had just happened. He was…he was supposed to be cold with her, he was avoiding her. He made a point of not talking to her even, only consorting when absolutely needed. And he had successfully done so, managed to ignore her. When Lussuria told him of her birthday, he shrugged it off. It was really easy to forget about her and his recent, stupid, emotional turmoil when he barely saw her.

But then she appeared at the party out of nowhere and no matter how much he was telling himself he should look away, all he did was look at her. All the time, everywhere she went, he kept an eye on her: where she was, who she was with…as if it mattered to him. It didn't, not really; but if there was something he had to admit was that for some crazy reason he was jealous. When Levi danced with her, or Squalo, then some random nobody after Lussuria, and then Squalo again—it made him genuinely mad. As if she wasn't supposed to dance with these people, he was discontented, no annoyed in the same way he'd be had she disobeyed him. So he finally dared to go closer, close enough to have her at arm's length, no matter how much he'd avoided it.

When he did though, she was being overly chatty with Lussuria and Squalo. Ah, Squalo—why was the fact it was Squalo bothered him so much more? It was an inexplicable reason but it was him being around her that incensed him the most. He had to leave to not break something – and he sure as hell wouldn't be aiming at the wall –. Why though? He actually asked a higher power, because he just didn't know. He only wanted this unfathomable jealousy, this unreasonable mood had to go away. But it wouldn't on its own, so he tried to stop it with conventional means: drinking. But that didn't work at all and other than completely trashed, he was no less jealous. Damn it!

That was when he decided that maybe it was time to go to the problem itself: her. When he did, finding her again in the kitchen, cooking and tending to everyone, it pissed him off again. It was unreasonable, very out of character for him, to be like this over a woman but he was suddenly so possessive! He wanted to be the only person around her, and the only one she took care of and no one else. He wanted them all to go away…it took but one look. Oddly enough it satisfied him. Which fact of course made him an even bigger stranger to himself. Was he losing it? Damn it, it was those memories that did this to him! He'd been unbalanced ever since, not a day earlier. There was where all the possessiveness came from.

He hadn't even meant to give her something for her birthday but the idea alone that she liked Lussuria's present so much, she immediately wore it was abhorring to him. He had to outdo that. And since he hadn't bothered to buy her anything, giving her what she persistently asked for would work. Oh, the pleasure to see her so stunned and gleeful at him saying it was unparallel! It was almost worth all this trouble. Almost.

When he thought about it again, maybe he realised why Squalo's presence had got to him more than others'; he was supposed to be his right hand, the man who knew exactly what he wanted. If that was the case then what the hell was he doing, dancing with Francesca and being all…couple-like. Not even lovers-like, no; a real couple, fighting over silly things. Ugh, the more he remembered the angrier he got all over again; he'd be in for a big treat later.

No. Wait just a minute; this whole absurd deal was finished. If he gave any continuation to it, it would mean that those pesky memories meant something to him—they didn't. They were just still fresh in his mind, nothing else. Right?

He shook his head. Bester even went off gallivanting with her, of course he wasn't right. "That lion is supposed to be a physical manifestation of your soul or what not, don't be coy boss," Squalo had told him not two days ago. He shrugged it off with a nonchalant "I don't understand what you're trying to say" but Squalo had retorted very hotly. "I mean he follows her around everywhere and keeps her safe from…paper cuts! Don't be in denial—we all saw those memories." He threw him a glass, which broke on his head, but he kept going. "VOOOI! Instead of denying it, try to realise what you saw won't happen, she won't die any time soon and you aren't even attracted to her. So there's no way you're going to-"

"If you dare say it, I'll kill you."

"Fine _that_, in two years. Preposterous. Sure, your hunch was right about the general danger since someone tried to steal her research and probably kidnap her, but she wouldn't have died…or at least speak to her again, you moody boss! It makes you crazier in the head not to!"

Squalo had said that, thinking about it. Heh, that little prick; he said it and then did something to urge it to happen! Xanxus laughed, as he got into bed. Now he had a new reason to do something to him and that something would not be pretty. He smirked at all the terrible things he just thought of doing to him and went to sleep; that night, Xanxus had no nightmares. For some reason though, Squalo did.

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><p><strong>AN**: In Italian the wish after happy birthday is "cento di questi giorni" which means "a hundred of these days". I was torn between what to use but I decided on the English one, since I'm writing in this language. But I had to include both. Also, I just noticed both parts ended the same way, something happening to Squalo or him doing something. Oh Squalo, you're the true star of this show.

As always thank you for reading and please leave a review to let me know what you liked/loved/disliked/hated. ^^


	23. Incidents, Part 1

**A/N**: I'm so sorry I'm late I know I have no excuse I'm so very sorry! I was really swamped with things and to top it off, I had no inspiration and when that happens I just hate it and I feel so counter-productive I'm really sorry.

Ahem, that being said welcome to the latest installment and I hope you have a good time. This is all about Francesca, this chapter and the next will be all about Xanxus. Fu fu fu, I hope you're looking forward to it.

I do not own the KHR characters, only the original ones.

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><p>.<p>

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The first day of the New Year was very slow for everyone; none had anything to do or anywhere to be and it was driving them all to their computers or TV screens for a very plain and ordinary night in, but Xanxus of course who slept the day away. Squalo had suggested it – meaning he said he'd be leaving to watch something – and quickly they all thought it a wonderful idea. Even if they ended up fighting over what they would like to see and in fact spent more time arguing about what was better rather than watching something. They had decided on a James Bond film—Sean Connery of course, the sole thing they all had agreed upon.

Francesca was surprised they actually liked that movie, until they started watching; every five seconds one of them would interject and comment on something or how the enemies were useless and how in a real fight, they could all take on Bond successfully. The only one to disagree was Lussuria, who very much preferred to date rather than kill him.

She swore she would never watch a movie she was genuinely interested in with them again.

The second day of the New Year she decided it would be the one she would go out in the world again. She found her aunt's son contact info, by joining the social media, within seconds. So she contacted him to inform him she'd be going out (she lied by saying she was coming back to the city) and she'd be delighted to finally see him. They were supposed to go to that first party together…only he never came of course; he was mourning. She went though. Oh damn it; she had never thought how that would look to people. Meh, she didn't really care about people anymore.

But she did care about Giovanni, her aunt's son. She would go out with him and explain why anything happened, how much she loved his mother and if he let her, maybe recount stories of them together. She sighed, just thinking about it. Giovanni had replied immediately, saying he'd be more than willing to meet with her. That was a good thing—the guilt though wasn't. She should work on that—Giovanni even gave her his phone number on his own accord. And she didn't want to look pathetic to the kid, too. She'd started practising on her best smile immediately.

.

"Bester, _stay_."

"How about _Francesca stay_; where do you think you're going? Come back in!"

Both the lion and Squalo were being difficult at the same time; how wonderful: Bester would not let her leave, holding on to her leg with its mouth – minding the teeth – determined not to let her get in the car and drive off…at least not without him. Squalo on the other hand just appeared, requesting her inside, grabbing her by the forearm.

"I need not come back in; the boss gave me leave of absence just for today—said I should be back by ten. And I will. But Bester won't let me go out of stubbornness. You're a lion you know, I can hardly take you with me," she shouted at him exasperated, but it wouldn't relent.

"The boss said you could go?"

"Don't use that tone with me; I know how he is. But he said as a birthday gift, I could go. Just one day…"

That seemed to be news to him; he was truly amazed he was being so generous. "Okay…as you were, I guess."

"As soon as I get this lion off of me."

"Come on Bester, let her go," he urged, and surprisingly the lion listened to him. "There; enjoy your day. Be careful with Anna though," he said and patted the hood of the red car in front of him "she just got her paint done."

She rolled her eyes. "Anna, really? You named it?" Distaste was evident. "Goodbye Squalo; see you in…fourteen hours."

She smiled; he nodded. She got in Anna and drove off.

"…or in the next fourteen seconds; good job holding her off while I prepared, Bester," Squalo commended.

He briskly walked to the garage and chose a car. He needed something low key, so a black car was the best choice. A black Mercedes he decided—a small but elegant one, blends in easily. The first thing he did was activating the GPS system; all Varia cars had one, they left the car only on operations and even then they were replaced with some other things. No matter, the dot that corresponded to the car she was using, was heading down town. Great, easy place to follow someone.

He put on black shades, pulled the collar of his coat up and hid his white hair under a big, black driving cap. Incognito. He started the car and left…

.

She reached the square in twenty minutes; it was an uneventful but guilt-ridden trip. She kept thinking and thinking _and thinking_ how Giovanni would react to her. He was very polite over the emails they exchanged, but she would never blame him if all the kindness was just a ruse to get close enough to slap her! Or something equally understandable…she sighed repeatedly. She had to get out of the car and go to the meeting point. It was sunny but not too much yet; people weren't all that many because of the early hour, so she could easily enjoy a walk around.

It was 8:26 when she got the key out of the ignition, meaning she had another full fifteen minutes till he met with her cousin…yet she couldn't move. She told herself many times that if he only wanted to slap or shout at her she had to be there to hear it, so she should stop being such a chicken. In fact, she almost expected it; it looked to be the best option. But what if he actually wanted to be there? That was what truly scared her. She'd have no idea how to react to acceptance. And _that_ was an issue that she knew didn't come just from living with a bunch of lunatics—it was way older than them, dating back to her parents giving her up to the Cervelo and that house.

She sighed. She would not be intimidated now; swallowing all of her guilt, fear and anxiety and walked to the fountain of the square. There she made to sit but lo and behold, a young man, boy still, emerged from an adjoining street. His gait was slow but very energetic and the smile on his face was unrivalled; the moment he saw her, it became even wider. Taking all the courage in the world from seeing that, she stood up, mirroring his friendly expression and walked to meet him half-way.

"Hey Giovanni!" She rushed to hug him.

"Francesca…" he hugged back with delight.

_The kid's really grown_, she thought; from up close, the difference was even more striking than the photos she'd seen online. He almost matched her in height now and his voice was deeper than she'd ever imagine! It reminded her of her uncle and kind of made her a little annoyed but his hair and eyes were so alike his mother's, she only had to look at him to feel that overwhelming warmth from ten seconds ago. He even grew out his hair…she liked it. She did it herself – black long strands would reach her elbows soon – but his were the perfect length for his face: just a little below his collar bone and all straight. Heh, it ran in the family.

"It's so god to see you," he exclaimed, holding her hands now. "I couldn't even remember what you looked like, you know? Thank God you came to me first. Not that there are a lot of people in the square at this time, ha ha." His laughter was carefree and light; it was so good to hear him so naturally well, not pushing it. She could easily understand when people were faking emotions of happiness, but he was honest. That alone made her heart calmer. "Anyway, how's life, how are you?"

"I'm so sorry for the long absence; I should have done this sooner but-…you know, I won't justify myself, it was horrible of me. So sorry," she kept apologising for something he never even complained about but apparently troubled her. "Life's been good, all things considered; I'm coping. Everything gets easier when you accept it for what it is."

"Wow who died and made you an old woman? My grandmother's more positive than you."

He laughed again and anyone else's just paled in comparison; she would just look at him with a smile on her face. It had been four years since last time she'd seen him and—her eyes watered. Oh not now; she desperately tried to push tears back. "I'm an old woman then," she teased "how old are you anyway, ten?"

"Fourteen if you have to know."

"Well that explains the height young man; and the voice. Thank god we were not on the phone or I'd ask for your father to put you on the phone." He laughed again. He kept laughing or smiling all the time, how amazing. She wouldn't be able to do it if it weren't for his amazingly good mood.

He offered his arm, all gentleman-like. "Since you're an old lady, I better support you then."

"What a kind young man," she said as she took it with all her grace.

"This is Squalo reporting in: she just met with her cousin, Giovanni Tutsi; they are currently walking towards the general square, hands linked. She appears to be entertained," he spoke into a device in his hand. He remained silent for a moment. "VOOOOOOOI! The hell you think I'm doing so far? Of course I will-!" Pure and utter surprise took over his features and then anger swooped in, smashing his receiver into the ground! "Those assholes just dared to cut off my feed! I will _kill_ them when I get back. As if having stake-out duty isn't bad enough…" he muttered the last bit to himself and kept a watchful eye in case someone had heard his little outburst.

It was already eleven yet she felt like they had been together for only five minutes; she could not remember the last time she had this kind of fun: Giovanni was unbelievably accepting of all her quirks and misgiving she openly admitted to him and at the same time eager to hear the stories she could remember, starring his mother.

He and she were so different. From the moment she saw her casket being buried six feet under – through a goddamn camera feed – till this very day, she would close her ears to anything that had to do with her aunt when spoken by someone other than her mind or subconscious. She was very lucky, thinking that she lived with the most uncaring people in the world so no one would go out of their way to remember why she was there, how much more rub it in her face, but at the same time that made them the worst because they were insensitive enough to bring it up when they wanted to hurt her – thankfully, the scale weighted heavily on the first.

Giovanni though, he couldn't get enough of it! He wanted people to talk about his mother, he lapped it up! Apparently, he couldn't get enough of it, too because she was the one who did all the talking. Then again, she was recounting some of the funniest, weirdest and probably oldest memories they shared abandoned in that house…heh, so strange and so annoying a realisation: her fondest memories of that time of her life was when she was young, but the most important ones were the most recent ones. It's funny how she only just thought about it so coherently.

"You know, I love hearing stories about her," he commented offhandedly, stopping a surprisingly honest laugh from the woman next to him "it's too bad my dad doesn't have many good ones."

"Well, that's normal because-." She swallowed her tongue to keep herself in check. She was about to say "he didn't spend that much time with her"; now that was insensitive. If his father hadn't spent too much time with her then how about her son who never had the chance to be coddled by said mother due to her constant absence? It felt like she would be rubbing it in. _Oh no, I need to say something else, quickly_. "it's normal because he was…her husband." _Yes, because that makes perfect sense. Ugh, what the hell am I saying?_ "I mean, married people, right? They uh, don't understand-."

"It's okay," he assured her with a knowing look on his face "I know what you're not saying. She wasn't home, right?"

She looked up with slight panic in her eyes. What was up with this kid? He could see beyond the surface in a very alarming speed. Her heart beat faster just at the thought of what he must have been through and what he just told her. She felt like the most horrible person to ever walk this planet! She then remembered her housemates and relaxed a bit.

His laughter though, took away all of her anxiousness. "It's oaky so please, don't look so desperate. It's normal that things like this will come up; and it isn't even all that terrible. And I know my father better than my mom, I realise that, so I'm here to get to know her better. Through you, the one person she was always close to. Am I jealous? Yes. Am I annoyed? Definitely. Do I blame you? Not at all; so just take it easy and don't have a panic attack every two minutes and we'll be fine."

"…I think you officially became the adult of this conversation," she confessed and patted his shoulder. "Good job. Ha ha, you're so much like your mother, in ways I would never expect and it's so comforting. Thank you, for coming here, today."

"No problem."

. . .

. .

.

"This is Squalo. They are headed to a nearby café. I shall."

.

"This is Squalo; she ordered an ice-cream. I had the waiter change the order with a tea; it's too cold for an ice-cream. V-VOOOOOOOOOOOOOI what do you mean I'm doing stupid things? The boss was very explicit: protect her from every danger. Yes it is a danger…whatever. Bye."

.

"This is Squalo; she tried to order an ice-cream again and return the tea but I handled it. What do you mean—VOOOOOOOI I'm not being ridiculous, I'll kill you all when I get back shut up!"

.

"This is Squalo; she's paying for both. Very cheap of Giovanni to let her…"

.

"This is Squalo; they left the café, walking towards the mall area. I think they are going shopping. God help me."

.

- "This is Squalo; I was right. They are going into a store with women's clothing as I speak; no Lussuria I don't fucking care! So what if she has terrible taste? I'm not her mother. She can buy—oh my god, she's trying on a _beige_ dress…! I see what you mean. Yes, I'll handle it."

He slipped into the store and started taking photos of other dresses, blue red and green ones. He sent them all to Lussuria with the question "which one?" to which he received the prompt reply "all are better than that hideous beige. You decide." He decided all three were exceptional.

- "This is Squalo; I swapped the dresses and the shoes. Yeah, I'm serious, she was about to buy them…and that yellow one with the frills, which was horrible. I know. I guess. Oh, I told the lady at the front desk I wanted them in the same size as her for my girlfriend. I'll keep you informed."

.

"This is Squalo; I just eliminated another threat," he informed as he dumped three more unconscious men near the dumpsters. "They too were planning to flirt with her. I _know_ that, you don't have to tell me. Bye."

.

"This is Squalo; they just entered a restaurant. Apparently she was hungry…and so am I. I'll be back."

.

"This is Squalo; they just ordered ribs and wild boar as main courses. I ate three sandwiches from the store next door. VOOOOOOOI what do you mean who cares? I'll fucking kill you when I get back!"

.

"This is Squalo; _she_ paid again. Man, that guy is very cheap."

.

- "This is Squalo; we have a situation: they are headed to a candy store that currently someone is robbing."

- "This is Squalo; crisis averted: I managed to thwart the robbery and I received a cake as a reward. No, I ate it already. Bye."

- "This is Squalo; they entered the candy store. I repeat they entered the candy store. They kept quite the whole robbery deal, good. Now she's buying a bunch of things…wait, she's handing them over to her cousin. It's a gift. And now she's ordering some more…oh these are for us. Yes, the white truffles, too Bel, stop asking. What do you mean only for you? VOOOOOOOOOOOI I'll eat if I want to. Over."

.

"This is Squalo; she forgot the bags with the clothes on a bench. I'm waiting to see if she'll remember…she didn't. I'm going to pick them up and put them in her car."

.

"This is Squalo; they parted ways and she's going to the car. I'm going to mine."

.

"This is…Squalo; I crashed my car on an asshole that almost crashed into her. She's safe and so is Anna but I'm afraid my Jenny is a goner. Oh no, thankfully she didn't see it or else she'd stop to help or something. I'll commandeer another vehicle and I'll come back."

He crawled out of the wreckage pretty banged up but he had a job to finish: he kicked the other guy for good measure and then waited for the first fast car to come his way.

=:=:=:=:=

When Francesca came back, she happily went inside, from the back door that leads to the kitchen: the time was nine to ten and she was on time! She had the bag with the sweets, blissful to have bought them and headed straight for the fridge. Storage is the safest-…she froze. Oh no! She forgot her dresses!

"Aw man! Why? They were so…! And I really liked…!" tears started pooling in her eyes. "M, my precious new buys, I just forgot about them. Why!"

She started outright bawling mid-motion and the fridge was still open. Hastily, she shoved the sweets inside and banged on it. "God damn it."

From all the noise of her crying and all, she didn't hear Squalo coming in. "What are you crying about?"

She jumped out of her skin! "Don't do that please…and if you have to know—no. I shouldn't tell you, because you'll just make fun of me." She wiped at her eyes and rubbed them, to stop the tears. She crossed her hands. "Just leave me alone to grieve."

But she finally looked at him, she refused to do so before her eyes were dry, and she stared. "Wh-…what happened to you? You look terrible and torn plus you're bleed-!"

"I know; I had a difficult job." _Watching over you, crazy broad_; _why the hell was that so difficult? Just what kind of problem-attracting person are you-this isn't a goddamn movie!_

"Aw, suddenly my dresses seem slightly less significant. Let's get you to the lab; I'll clean you up there."

"Wait, you said dresses? You have some bags from an expensive clothing store in Anna, maybe those are them?" _Heh, you bet your ass they are; I put them there. And yet you still forgot about them? What an airhead._

"Oh my God, really? Thank you so much, that puts my mind in such ease…! Um, I'll go get them after you're…or maybe can I go get them-?"

He rolled his eyes exasperated. "I'll bring you the goddamn bags at your lab! You go get the necessary things ready…"

She jumped up to hug him, clapping her enthusiasm once he dodged her. "Thank you very much! I'm going now."

"Yeah, you go _maniac_."

An hour later, Squalo was adequately patched up and well-taken care of by the scientist, on whose side was still the lion from the moment she returned. It stood there watching, growling even when she accidentally hurt Squalo by pulling too hard. She'd mutter apologies and grimace guiltily when she did, but for some reason it was Squalo who appeared to be uncomfortable and not because of the pain. She noticed when she finished taking care of him.

"I'm sorry; I must have been a bit too rough; even Bester complained." She laughed, but he appeared to be even more awkward. "But are you okay? You're sweating profusely still. It isn't a fever right?" She checked him with her hand. "No, you're fine. Then maybe it's because it's too hot in here, I'll crack it down a little, yeah?"

"Y-yeah…you do that…"

He looked at the lion with the edge of his eyes; it felt like he was looking into his end. How could he tell her that the reason the lion growled wasn't because he was hurt but something entirely different? He gulped, praying Bester wouldn't devour him any moment soon.

"Oh, do you wanna see the new dresses I bought?"

"No;" the lion stared "err, I mean yes," the lion kept staring "I mean whatever I don't know."

This once, it was her who stared. "I think they hit you too hard on the head on this mission," she commented while going for her bag. "Now," she reached inside the first bag and took out the first thing she grabbed "this is the b-…blue one. Wait, this isn't the dress I bought!" She started looking into both bags, taking out the other dresses, too. "Mine was beige and yellow and pink, not red and green and blue—why the hell did they give me these instead? I know for sure these are my bags; it has a stain on it I made during lunch…wait. Maybe they messed them up at the store; I'll call and check!"

"These aren't bad though. And what do you mean beige? That's a horrible colour."

"Yes but it is discreet; and the style of the dress was modest but fashionable—all of them! These are…so provocative."

"They are every day dresses; what about them is provocative?"

"The red one is very tight and its fabric is so…_that_, that it shows every little thing; the blue one is very classy, but the neckline is too much for me! And the green one…well that's actually kind of nice."

"You just like the colour green," he snubbed. He preferred the blue one. "Either way, I suggest you get used to them. We don't have anyone deliver us anything and there's no way you're going out again to change them yourself. Also, I'm pretty positive none of us would ever go into the trouble of doing it for you."

She looked hurt by the truthful yet abrupt comment, just for a moment; then she shrugged and decided to make the best of it. "I guess you're right," she concluded "but I still have no idea how they look on me…know what? I'll try them on! And you'll tell me what you think. Oooh they have matching shoes here."

The lion growled.

"Ha ha, you too Bester—you'll tell me what you think, too," she added hastily, petting it under its snout and at the sides of its head. It made a pleased sound so five seconds later she left it alone.

"Y-y-y-y-you know, maybe it's better if only Bester-"

"Are you mad? Bester's a lion; incapable of human speech. How will he tell me what I look like and stuff? Geez. Anyway, you two boys go out while I'll be trying them on, okay?"

Bester started complaining for making him stand. "Wow, ok; stay then."

She started undressing the moment Squalo closed the door; "you know," she started talking to the animal "I know you aren't a person so what difference does it make if you see me in my underwear, but it's just strange to me, you know? You're still a male…"

It was clear Bester didn't understand her, or didn't want to. He just sat there, looking at her. Then, just as the lion was looking at her, she was also looking at it, and she got an idea. She smirked. Just as she was, stripped down to her undies, she made the small distance to the animal, and sat down next to it. "Hope you don't mind; I always wanted to do this. Please don't maul me." And just like that, she bent low...and hugged him!

Oooh, he was so soft! Real fur is the best! Especially if it's a lion that's letting you hug it. "Mmmm," her delight immense "I could fall asleep like this. Good Bester."

She lied down on the animal, still hugging it. All the white soft fur in her fingers and arms and tummy and legs—this is the softest bed ever! She patted him encouragingly. "Good Bester…" She didn't want to get up, but she knew she had to. Reluctantly, she dod and tried on the red dress. "Come in," she finally announced.

Hesitantly, the door opened and Squalo walked in. "Oh you're right, this dress is too tight; even you have boobs now."

That was an arrow straight to her heart. "And your waist looks kind of big" another arrow "and I never noticed you have chicken legs." And another. "But it looks nice."

"How can it look nice, if it shows so many defects of my body!? Oh my God, do I look that bad? Why dear God, why did they mix those dresses up? Even Bester thinks I look dreadful," she turned to the lion "don't you?"

It made a noise which oddly enough could be translated to a "no"; both people looked surprised. "You think I look nice?"/"You think she looks nice?"

"Wh-hey! What's the surprise for? Didn't you say-?"

"Yeah, but he's a lion…"

"Right. Wait, we need Lussuria; he knows best!"

"No, we don't. This stays between you, me and the lion. Now I'll go outside, you try the rest ones on."

He summarized the whole process on purpose; he knew she yet had to administer the drugs to the boss so the sooner she got this over with, the better. Besides, the other two dresses were very fitting on her (the red one wasn't bad, it made her look sexy objectively, but he valued his head far too much to ever admit it out loud).

"Wear the red dress to the boss." Squalo's suggestion surprised her. "You'll get that third opinion you wanted, even if it isn't Lussuria. Though in a way it's even better and more important; it's not Lussuria you want to look pretty for, after all," he explained when she raised her eyebrows in question.

Though she became redder than an open wound, neither commented. Even Bester followed him out, disappearing. She decided to do as they suggested, but when she did get to the boss, she lost all nerve and almost walked back again but Bester appeared out of nowhere and drove her inside…and when Xanxus saw her, he said nothing; nothing at all. Only when she left, did he decide to comment with: "You look slightly less repulsive in red than any other colour; you should wear it more often, it hurts my eyes less."

She stood at the door for a small moment before she leaves, Bester staying with his owner; did he just paid her a compliment? In a very convoluted and offensive way, but she had this instinct she should feel honoured. Besides…that meant he liked the dress. She felt a smile spreading on her face and left fast enough not to be seen by anyone. Squalo was right, she did feel better than if Lussuria praised her. She tried not to blush too much and went to bed.

=:=:=:=:=

"Francesca, can you-?"

She jumped up standing at the sound of Squalo's voice and hurried to hide something behind her. "Yes?"

"…what are you doing?"

"Nothing, nothing at all I'm not doing anything, why would I be doing anything—are _you_ doing anything?"

"You're _really_" he stretched the word on purpose "convincing right now."

"Shut up," she snubbed and hit him on the shoulder, still not showing him what she was obviously hiding behind her back.

"Whatever; what were you doing? I saw you scribbling something."

"There are some things better left shrouded with the cloak of mystery and-AH! Ah, urgh! Give it back right now!"

As per usual he paid zero attention to her and instead did whatever he wanted: with one fluid movement he was behind her, whatever she was holding snatched away. It was a simple, black spiral notebook, maybe three hundred pages. He started leafing through it and most of it was written. "What are all these notes? I don't think I understand anything—your hand-writing is awful."

He threw it somewhere and she rushed to catch it. "Damn it, be careful! I've things tucked in the pages and they aren't by any means secured!"

"Oooh, like what," he asked, his interest immediately rekindled? He even tried to snatch it again, but this once she was prepared and held on to it tight. She started flipping through the notebook till she saw all of her samples were safely there. Her relief was evident. "Why are you pressing these things?"

She yelped; when did he come over her shoulder!? "It's not a hobby or anything" she informed as if the alternative would be too dreadful "I just needed them for a…project of mine."

"What project?"

"Never mind," she snapped again and shut the notebook closed. He looked at her funny. "It's nothing of import."

"If it weren't you wouldn't act like that…so what is it?"

"Nothing, really it's nothing; leave it alone."

She tried to sound nonchalant but failed miserably. So when she tried to remove the notebook he held on to it. Strongly. "Let it go."

"Nope, I'll try and make out your handwriting. So you let go." She didn't. "Let go now," he continued pulling gently, but she just wouldn't. "Let it. go." She shook her head. "Okay; no more mister nice guy."

With one decisive pull he retracted the object and rocked her back and forth. When she pouted he simply smiled in victory; she pouted even more. He turned his back and started skimming it, but when he realised the pages with the samples had writing on them, too – he couldn't discern if they were flowers or not – he started reading thoroughly from there. She kept trying to somehow take it back, stop him from reading, but her height, strength and speed made that impossible. Still, Squalo seemed pensive.

"Are you…making a perfume?"

She gawked. "Wh…what are you talking about?" How the hell did Squalo understand what she was trying to makethis isn't his area of expertise! "I literally have no clue as to why-?"

"Misses S, are you trying to make your own personal perfume? What will this be some sort of product for release—a new line: Misses S, for all those who feel a little sadistic on the inside?"

He laughed at the absurdity of the idea but he kept reading – and she kept jumping and clawing, trying to take her property back – seeing how his premise was actually slowly proven. "Are you making the perfume for yourself…to seduce the boss?"

She blushed so much she literally turned as red as a tomato! "N-n-n-n-n-n-n-n-no! Of course not! I'd never…why would I want to seduce the boss anyway? As if I'd care enough for him to t-t-t-t-t-t-try and…seduce him!" She was almost having a mental breakdown in front of him. "He's just a stupid annoying brat anyway and I'd never be attracted to someone so immature like him…"

"So you are making this perfume for him; man that's weird! How did you come up with this idea on the first place? Why don't you just go buy one like a normal person? You do realise that's why they sell them, right? I bet Lussuria would love to pick one out."

"I, I didn't say-…I thought I told you; you were wrong."

"Yeah and you were very convincing yet again; answer me now or I'm telling the boss."

"NO!" Agonised, she physically stopped him. "Please don't say anything to him; it really isn't like that. I just…" She sighed defeated. "I just want him to notice me; just notice me."

She didn't have to say why, Squalo knew: even after her birthday party, Xanxus acted like she didn't exist; Bester would follow her around everywhere, keep an eye out and watch how she was doing, but the boss? As if he'd show any signs of caring. He kept ignoring and looking down on her. Even that "compliment" with the dress didn't go very far—in fact he acted as if he'd never said it. It was cruel on her and they could all see it. Lussuria would even joke about it from time to time, saying "at least you have my ring for comfort". And sometimes he took her out on one of his shopping sprees, buying little gifts for her to make her feel better.

But two months, ten gifts and five incidents of people trying to steal her research later and the boss would not look at her. "So I thought if I smelt like something he's familiar with, maybe he would give me a second look. But that's all," she assured as well as she could "nothing creepy."

"And how do you know what smells familiar to him?" He thought about it a little bit. "I mean, besides steak and tequila."

"I may have done a little research on where he grew up and I may have ordered some flowers and other things with distinctive scents that would remind him of his child or teenage hood."

He paused browsing, just to look at her. "That's messed up."

"Shut up, shut up! It's just a project; I was never keen on actually doing it."

He snorted, not believing her yet again. "Oh, so you justordered, catalogued and _tested _all of the specimens on him, nothing serious." She became even redder if possible. "What does it say here?" he cleared his throat. "Day one: jasmine. Elicited strong reaction (asked about it). Remains to be seen if positive or negative. Day two: was positive; didn't ask again but stayed around for longer. Day three:"

"Yes I get your point, geez, stop…I was just experimenting. I never really made the perfume."

"Of course," and there was his typical I-don't-believe-you tone and immediately went to the last page with any writing. "Let's see; date: today," she tried to take it back again but he lifted it out of her reach "last entry: I give up on the perfume, it's no use." He looked at her astonished and she answered with a triumphant smile. He didn't like how fast she was to play coy so he kept reading. "It's preferable to carry around the spices or flowers instead of making it into a perfume. It gives a more authentic odour."

He thundered her.

"What…?" she was looking at him like a long-lost puppy that he'd picked up from the streets and he now wanted to throw back out.

"I think I'll go now…talk to the boss a little. Nothing about you or your project though, don't worry-!"

"NO! Squalo, no, I implore you; please don't say anything! He barely talks to me anyway; it's stupid and childish and…just…"

Oh no; oh no, oh no, oh no, oh no; the waterworks are coming. Panicked, he tried to get out of the predicament by turning about and promptly running away. And she just stood there, trying not to cry too much.

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><p><strong>AN**: Chapter end~! Please tell me your opinions through a review or a pm. They are always appreciated. And thank you all for reading anf sticking with me, I can't stress enough how much I love all of you who fave, alert and review my stories.


	24. Incidents part 2

**A/N**: This is not a drill; I repeat, this is not a drill ,this is an actual update. I'm so so so so sorry it took me this long. I'm sorry. I'm very sorry. Have this chapter and oh my God I'm writing now I swear, I write a lot.

Disclaimer here. Please don't kill me...

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><p>.<p>

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"NO! Squalo, no, I implore you; please don't say anything to the boss! He barely talks to me anyway; it's stupid and childish and…just…"

Oh no; oh no, oh no, oh no, oh no; the waterworks are coming. Panicked, he tried to get out of the predicament by turning about and promptly running away.

After he made a run for it, he found himself outside his boss's bedroom; staring at the two imposing doors, he argued with himself whether he should or shouldn't knock. Duty won out in the end though, and he rapped his fingers against the wood. In record time for his boss, he let him in with an "enter" not quite as bored as usual.

When Squalo saw him, he immediately knew why he was acting a tiny bit out of character: he was on the floor, sitting, one foot spread out to the side and the other bend, his knee supporting his elbow. In the space between his parted legs were all kinds of photos – most of them looked very old – and some letters and other kind of documents. He had one photo in his hand and a half-empty glass of bourbon in his other. Squalo was still too far away to make out the photos but he was sure they were approximately ten years old. When he looked at Xanxus's face, he could see curiosity, nostalgia, and something he didn't quite understand.

"Boss?"

"You remember the day we went to that restaurant and some random guys started shooting at us?"

Squalo started laughing; oh, that was a good day. "We hadn't been in the Varia for too long, had we?" He could remember it was only a couple of weeks he had killed the former boss of the Varia, but he'd already given up the place to Xanxus. He wanted him to advance, be the new boss. He wasn't there yet but…he'd be getting there.

Xanxus nodded to his words. "They thought they could handle us because we were new." But he exceeded their expectations by much. He loved doing that, exceeding people's expectations, proving his superiority to everyone again and again.

Laughter escaped the long-haired man once more. "They hit the floor faster than they blinked; they hadn't even drawn their guns, the assholes, underestimating us."

"…but we took care of them."

"And we'd taken a picture that day, I recall now; just as we were entering the restaurant, some journalist snapped it. And you "confiscated" it immediately. Is that the photo you got there?"

Xanxus didn't nod this once; he simply held up the photo between his two fingers and took a sip of his drink. Squalo was curious enough to actually take it in his hands and study it. Heh, he had short hair then, how odd did it look now. And they were wearing simple suits, despite being in the Varia. The first weeks had been rocky to say the least but it was so long ago, it now seemed nothing but a far-off memory. A snort of laughter escaped him a third time; they were so eager back then, so motivated—the boss, too. Now he isn't that much, it's like he is on autopilot.

But the situation was strange at least. It wasn't like him to look back into the past. "How come you remembered all of these?" He didn't even know Xanxus had all these pictures; as he returned the one in his hand, he browsed through the rest, knees bent low. There were pictures from when Xanxus was a boy!

"…I don't know."

And he wasn't lying, he didn't; but for some peculiar reason, he felt nostalgic. For a split moment he thought he had unfinished business with his past but, seeing all these photos, he knew he was mistaken. Yet the past days he had been gradually feeling an overwhelming desire to take a look into what has been, his younger years specifically.

"Maybe it's your crazy scientist's doing," Squalo noted offhandedly. After all, it couldn't be such a coincidence she wanted to make a perfume that prayed on his memories to appeal to him and suddenly he thinks of his childhood.

Xanxus gave an incredulous snort in the lines of "Why the hell would you say that?" but in a very derogatory way about his mental state. But Squalo was determined to tell him this and brushed off his attitude.

"VOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOI listen to me! I told you she's getting attached, didn't I? Just today I found in her possession a document that clearly stated her intention of eliciting such a reaction from you, by carrying around spices or flowers from the places you may have been as a child or a young teen and look! Here you are looking at old photos."

Silence won out for about half a minute with both men looking at each other caught off guard by the candidness in their own expressions. "She's scarily good—and to think she did it just because she wanted but a fraction of your attentions and ended up giving you a trip down memory lane."

He was confused. Xanxus was confused and conflicted about how he should react to this. She was even more manipulative than he'd thought when she admitted things to him that day he was bed-ridden after Tsuna beat him. And damn was she sneaky! She hid whatever she was doing, going in a very roundabout way not to raise any suspicions and in the end succeeded in her self-appointed task. Sneaky and capable…plus, she'd escaped many situations that others would have been killed in her stead.

Counting from the first time they exchanged words till her being a little too lippy with him whenever she could afford it, he realised that somehow she wormed her way out of a lot life-threatening ordeals. Was it mere ability on her part? No, he knew he was being lenient with her…but he couldn't help it. Somehow, he just couldn't. Did he like it? Certainly not, it made him appear weak—especially with all these fucked up memories of a future that was never going to be anymore.

Suddenly, he started laughing. It was an honest and a mean laugh—just like him. Aw, he could not deny it, her antics amused him. Maybe that's why he gave her so much latitude, or maybe it had to do with the way she dealt with things that was so different from the rest of them that she just had to be preserved…no matter why though, he was aware of the special treatment as well as it wouldn't stop any time soon.

"Boss, you alright?" He gave a nod for an answer as his laughter died out but the mirth remained. "What do you propose we do? You've ordered everyone to stay away from her, yet Bester won't stop following her around; though how _he_ came to be, we still don't know since the boxes haven't even been made yet…! Technically. I say _that _is much more important but no one seems to listen to me so whatever."

There was a brief moment of silence and then he started his aggressiveness all over again. "Do something about this, stupid boss! And will you ever come out of here?"

Xanxus flung his glass on his subordinate's head, where it shattered and sprayed him with all the remaining bourbon. "VOOI! No matter how much you abuse me the problem remains. Do whatever the hell you want but don't blame me afterwards."

Giving his very ominous ultimatum, he turned about and left.

And then Xanxus was alone once more, only this once he had to _deal_ with his problem. He swore to himself he wouldn't think about the scientist in the form of his future child's mother, ever, ever again because that one time he almost felt his head explode. For the truth of the matter, in fact, his temperature raised so much, he almost died; that said a lot.

And Squalo thinking he hadn't looked into Bester's manifestation and why he appeared at odd times, he was wrong, because that's the first thing that caught his eye. He'd even dealt with the matter of the intruder who tried to steal Francesca's research! In fact, he'd found out that whoever tried to steal her research, had nothing to do with the family. He was an outsider dressed to resemble one of theirs, but he wasn't. Who was he? He found out a name but couldn't care less about the person; he wanted the ones behind him. Those he had yet to find.

He picked himself up from the floor and sat in his luxurious armchair, filling a new glass of bourbon.

Why Bester was there though, could not been explained. He even contacted old man Talbot, but he was even more cryptic than usual…! So he wasn't much help. He'd only said: "You are volatile, fire up immediately. And since your feelings are always loud and extravagant you confuse them as strong. But maybe a truly strong, powerful feeling is different than a loud one. Maybe it's the opposite—that one nagging sensation you just can't get rid of is what drives you. That is an honestly commanding emotion which taps into an unknown reserve, calls upon powers unexplored, all inside you."

Xanxus thought Talbot finally went senile, if his explanation was "you wished it really, _really _hard".

Though, the whole issue with the guy who broke into the house was serious. No complete stranger could ever break into _this _house, the Varia base of frigging operations. He had help from the inside; he needed to sort out the weeds. Of course he didn't suspect any of the four idiots but he said nothing to Squalo because it wasn't the time yet. He'd try a more hands-on approach and _then_ they'll help, though he sincerely hoped he could solve the most of this on his own.

And yes, sadly, he had to speak with Francesca again. He needed to know the details of her project. How exactly did it work? She'd spoke of a serum she administered but it couldn't be all that. What sort of results did it produce and could they be replicated or even improved without her or was she a necessary part? If someone steals it will they be able to make sense of it? She frequently claimed she was the only one who could take advantage of this research but he was certain if a good enough scientist got his hands on it, it would only be a matter of years to be an expert, even without her. But if not, will they prefer to kidnap her or destroy every copy of the research but theirs and kill her?

_If they're smart, they'll stay away from her or else terrible things are bound to happen, whoever they are._

Woooow there. Stop for a second. He needs to keep these thoughts in check. He caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror at that same time and what he saw he did not like: there was so much anger and spite just as at the fleeting image of finding a ransom note on her bed or going into her room and finding it empty, it was far from funny.

In fact he didn't even contemplate finding her dead because—

He looked himself in the mirror again and he hated that reflection. Or maybe the hate was already there, since _I swear to god they touch even one of her ugly hairs I'll personally make sure they don't see the light of day ever again._ Okay, he had a serious issue. Couldn't he just rewire his brain and be himself again? He could ask _her_ to do it, even if that meant he'd have to—

"_**Enough**_!"

He shouted at no one but himself and the bourbon glass shattered along with the mirror! He wasn't a child, not a real one. He never even lied to himself before. Why was he doing it now? He was frank, to the point of crude to everyone, himself included. If he wanted a pizza, he asked for a pizza; if he wanted power, he'd attempt to seize it! So now all he needed was a lowly twenty-two year old chick who just happened to live at the same house he did, what's the big deal! It wasn't lust and it wasn't anything stupid as feelings! It was purely an instinct.

Light came into the room then as the door opened. "Um…boss?" His head snapped in her direction so fast he heard a crack; her eyes widened. "I came for your medicine. Should I come back at another-?"

"Now is fine."

She was certainly apprehensive, the way she tiptoed around and to him; her eyes were wary not to look at him for too long in case he took insult. He watched her crane her neck or perk and swallow many times as if to start a conversation but then regretting it. The more he watched her, the more he realised how absolutely frightening he was to her or at least distant to the point of cold. For the first time, it irked him.

"What?"

He was curt and irritable but he didn't believe he actually helped her speak.

"Nothing," she almost squeaked it out, startled by the sudden attention just as she reached his side "I was just wondering…" her head dipped again, trying to sit on the floor "if Squalo came to see you, did he say anything about some experiment of mine?"

He wanted to smirk, but he resisted the urge; he decided to remain cool and impossible to read. He took his time asking: "you mean the one about the perfume?"

There was nothing not to laugh about in her face: from her deer-caught-in-headlights expression or the attempt to remain calm and admit nothing just as the gears in her head turned…and he could actually see them now, there at the back. She stayed unmoving, looking like that for quite a long time; after what seemed like an eternity she finally reacted: standing up, she turned about and proceeded to walk away.

His laughter died out a long, long moment later.

.

He started leaving his room more often after that day. Invigorating he found it, to walk around the halls of your home and strengthen the confidence of your men in you. Surely, had he ever suspected his men were losing faith in him he'd slaughter them one by one, but a boost of moral never went unneeded or unwanted. He strutted, Bester by his side, as he made his way to the dining room. It was two o'clock and he'd already been late for lunch.

"Bester, go bring someone who can cook," he ordered the lion when he saw there was no one but him in there; he sat down, feet on the table and all.

Some time passed.

"…" he heard voices coming from the hall—no, just the one. The closer it got the more distinguished it became; it was female. It must have been Francesca. "…just want to go out again!" yes, it was definitely her. "You understand me don't you Bester? You're locked up in here all the time, too; I bet you wanna see the outside as well! Or maybe just Africa; where were you brought from anyway? You're white…ugh; your mane is so fluffy!"

Was she holding a conversation with a lion? One that didn't even answer? That he had to see, he decided and stood up. Suddenly, growls were heard and he recognised discontent; she must have tried to pet him or hug him even—she was lucky he didn't maul her. "Okay grumpy, I'm letting you go…jeez, owner and pet one and the same. What other bad habits have you gotten from him? You already laze around all day and get irritated easily…!" she screamed—sharp and short. "I'm sorry I called you lazy…but I'm cranky because I just want to go out again, is that so bad? Ah…!"

"If you want another day off so badly you can have one," he said just as she was entering the kitchen, scaring the living shit out of her "but you'll have to work for it."

"Boss," she said slightly less jittery than usual! "You…mean that?"

"Why the hell would I say it if I didn't mean it?"

How could she actually ask him that—was she an idiot? She could kick herself. "What should I do then?"

"Food; we'll talk after."

She nodded like crazy. "Whatever you want!"

She immediately turned to the utensils full of determination to produce the finest dish he'd ever eaten…! Satisfied, he returned to the dining room. Bester followed only after she responded "yes, your food, too Bester" to his growling.

An hour later he had finished his meal; she was holding on to the tray with which she served him, waiting eagerly for his feedback on the food and the prospect of leaving this house again on her own. It was obvious he was suddenly in a good mood and she prayed to God he stayed that way because he suggested he'd let her go out! She was aware how she was acting like a puppy, looking at him expectantly, but she was convinced by now everyone saw her as a pet anyway, so why not act like it?

"Destroy every piece of evidence that indicates your research still exists. Keep only one copy on your person at all times but that will be the only one available. I'll take the manuscript and never give it to anyone. You do that, and you have the day out you wanted."

"…you don't mean I should try and dispose of everyone that knows about it, right?"

"Are you fucking stupid? _You_ can't do something like that."

She reddened; how could she say something like that? Living with them really wrapped her perception and mind. "The copy will be digital of course," she thought out loud "so what happens if anyone gets hold of it? Taking it for themselves will be four clicks away."

Ugh, he hated how she was always questioning orders. She was right of course, but the plan he had in his mind said she had to be kept in the dark. So he lied."That would imply people knowing you have something like that on you and how the hell are they gonna find out? How the hell will they get hold of it, too?"

"I…don't know. I'm just thinking about the worst case scenario. I suppose they would have to capture me first but if they really want the research they could be watching me." Oh fuck; did she just give him a reason to keep her inside? On her own!? "But I think that is extremely rare! Why are we even talking about my research anyway? This is so sudden!" she laughed out of nervousness. "I'm going to go destroy all of my blood samples now and the extra notes and the serums in the fridge and make sure this looks like it never happened; ever. Bye now."

When she was gone, a very sinister smirk took over his features. The first part of his plan was a success. Now he only had to see who would take the bait. And when the fish was hooked, he'd pull it out of the water! Then proceed to grill it till it said who was the one commanding the small fish. Maybe it was a whale—maybe it was a dolphin.

"Um," came her timid voice from behind a wall, slowly making an appearance again "when will this day be given to me?"

"Did you do it?" She drew a blank. "Then don't get ahead of yourself scum!"

"R-right! I'm on it, bye." She scurried away like a mouse.

No matter who was behind this, he'd get them; and no one would ever want to be in their shoes, suit or skin ever—not after the flames he'd receive just for thinking about crossing him or the Vongola.

Six days later, he allowed her to step outside for as long as she wanted, so long she came back by twelve. It was longer than the first time for no other reason he wanted to give whoever was trying to get his hands on her research more opportunities to misstep. His plan was very basic: he'd give one copy to her and keep the original; he'd let people think she was carrying the sole copy of the research with the intent to sell it under Varia's banner and the original was left in her room, _not lab_, under tight lock and key. "Rumours" say so anyway and who's better than anonymous people in the shadows to make something credible?

Thus, during her outing, Squalo would keep an eye on her – again – only this once he'd be aware the danger was real. The rest would provide support from HQ. He'd be invisible to Francesca and whoever may be following her. Meanwhile, he'd deal with things here at home: not Bester, but him would camp out at her room, waiting for the opportunists to show themselves. Then he'd capture, interrogate and torture whoever dared to commit anything like treason in his own house.

Squalo was reporting far less frequently this once since anyone might have been listening to him, but the reports were a lot more upsetting. There were people following her, people Squalo had never seen before, and though, statistically, most of them would be unrelated, those who weren't would present a real issue. And then there was the one following _him_. He had noticed, despite pretending not to.

Xanxus had no time to worry about that though; he was quietly staying in the shadows of her room, sitting in that armchair she never used. What with the colour of his clothes being totally black, he made sure to change his shirt, he had the perfect cover. Bester was there, but he wasn't; seeing he was more a physical manifestation of himself than anything else, he came and went with ease…but he was there, ready to launch itself on any trespassers. He knew this would take long, so he had the foresight to take bottles of tequila with him.

He was halfway through the third when he heard a noise; he'd been taking it slow, too so that must have meant he'd been in there at least four hours. Heh wasn't that a safe time lapse…! Whoever was doing this certainly knew she'd be out for long. His theory about the inside man was once more verified.

The sound of footsteps was nearly imperceptible, but he was no ordinary man—he was the boss of the Varia and woe to anyone who thought he didn't take the job with his worth; he eavesdropped and saw in his mind's eye the route the approaching thief was taking: sounds came from the south, meaning the left corridor. The time it took between two steps let him know whoever it was, they were moving stealthily; they were good at it, too because he could barely hear them—it could be either a man or a woman.

Bester suddenly materialised, and there was nothing forgiving about the way it looked towards the door! Its body hanged low, front and hind legs ready to give spring to his jump; Bester was ready to pounce. He didn't growl, unwilling to alert the soon-to-be prisoner to their presence, but his snout was twisted into something between hateful and calculative.

The footsteps kept coming closer and closer, but Xanxus had ample time to load his weapons; he was firing up just thinking about it. With both his pistols at the ready in his hands, either one resting on an arm, he waited. Finally, the door creaked open. A figure was seen, opening it just as much as it needed to burrow inside. He raised his weapons; Bester put all of his weight at his front.

The moment the door closed behind the traitor, the exact next one light flooded the room! Opening the eye he kept shut for better vision in case this happened, he immediately aimed: it was a man, dressed in all black, nothing but his eyes visible. But the only thing the trespasser managed to see was Xanxus's wicked smirk before he, too became nothing but a blur, as a shot of burning flames was fired!

The man cried out! He jumped to the side to avoid it, but he only managed to get hit in a less vital spot: it fried his leg instead of his chest. But the man had no time to think about the searing pain—more fireballs were shot at him, repeatedly, a volley that turned into a sea of flames! He dodged as fast as he could, avoiding every hurdle, barely making it. Everything was ablaze: he could turn nowhere to run! If he tried to open the door…it really wouldn't end well, not with all the fire surrounding him.

The man had no weapons on him to counter attack though that didn't mean he couldn't fight back: he broke into a sprint, aiming for Xanxus! He remained seated in the armchair, as if bored. Oh, he was underestimating his opponent. That never ends well for anyone! Hit with a new surge of bravery, the traitor avoided the licking flame with envy-worthy dexterity; he covered ten metres in mere three seconds. And just as he was about to pummel his enemy to the ground…a lion came out of nowhere and tackled him!

"What the fuck!? AAH!"

The lion that pinned him down now slashed with its claws across his chest! Blood stained his clothes and pain seized him, mixing his oxygen with blood; he coughed and tried to fight, but the lion roared in his face…!

"Let's not kill him yet Bester; he has to talk first," Xanxus commented, never getting up from his spot; just then, the fire alarm finally worked and showers rained down upon them. "And here I couldn't remember what I'd forgotten to take care of; too bad we won't be able to fry him. You'll just have to eat him raw later."

The man's eyes widened! "No-" he started coughing "no please," he kept on, still coughing struggling to breathe properly and speak at the same time. "Don't kill me and—…I'll tell you every…everything."

Xanxus finally stood up and bent next to the incapacitated man; he pulled the hood over his head. He was…no one he could recognise. Never mind. "What's your name?"

"Leonardo," he coughed a lot "Cierra; I was hired by" more coughing ensued and he tried not to drown in his own fluids "by the Giorno family."

_The Giorno family_, he thought to himself? _Are they planning a comeback? They've been off the grid for a long time, weakened and humiliated from the last time they tried to pull one on us. This may be much more serious that I thought._

"And which one" _they may be more_ "or ones in my house are under their thumb?" Xanxus put his foot on the man's throat; he pressed down enough to see blood come out of his mouth but not to hear his bones crack. "You tell me and I'll make sure you're dead before Bester eats you."

"N-n-no, p-lease! Don't," he could barely breathe now; the smoke and the pain and the blood hindered his every word "don't kill me! I'll tell you everything, please."

"You say that but I still can't hear names coming from your pathetic little—!"

"It was Paolo Della and his sister!"

"Paolo doesn't have a sister, scum," he said vindictively and pushed down on his carotid once more.

He hacked up more blood and tried to breathe. "O-…okay; it was a woman who introduced," cough "introduced herself…like that. She had green…hair…"

The pressure was lifted again; the boot had already left an imprint though. Paolo and a woman with green hair…that matches Eliana's description who's supposedly dating him. Well, if they were planning this for long, I can see why they'd say they were together, to avoid raising suspicions. _But_ "what kind of person with such hair allows themselves to be seen doing something like that? Won't she-?"

"She was wearing a wig! It was blond and very good; you couldn't discern the fake hair…if it weren't for my keen eye. There was a single spot that she didn't get to cover perfectly, at the back of her neck. A single strand showed and it was green and it looked much more real than the rest in comparison! She was a tall, thin woman, with big fake boobs."

_That does match her description_… "I see; I should thank you!" the man's lips dared to tug upwards, in a very cautious smile. "I guess it's goodnight for you now." He kicked him hard on the head; the man fell unconscious. Xanxus nodded to the lion. "To my room," he simply said and Bester bit Leonardo's ankle and started dragging him away.

So Paolo and Eliana were the ones behind this; and what if someone else was behind them, a middle man between them and the Giorno? Well, he'd to catch them, too anyway and then he'd know everything. But what was Paolo thinking? He was in his thirties, served this unit, the Varia for a long time to know these things weren't forgiven. And so did Eliana for that matter; were they trying to make a killing and retire? If that was the case, they chose the wrong family.

Xanxus didn't follow Bester; he moved the opposite direction to reach the rest who were in charge of the coms, with the exception of Levi, who was on the field for support in case of emergency. When he entered a small living room with nothing but the bare necessities, he saw Lussuria in complete disarray, hanging over the phone as if his life depended on it, waiting for something; Bel was serious; and Mammon was nowhere to be seen…that was disconcerting.

"What happened to you?"

"There's been complete radio silence from Squalo for almost ten minutes; this is the longest he ever took to talk to us, despite the ensuing chaos. Mama's worried." Did he say "ensuing chaos"? What was happening on his end? "Last time we heard him there was an explosion at the background, screaming from a large group of people and Levi had joined up with Squalo already; he promised to call us as soon as everything was under control but still nothing."

"And Mammon?"

"He left to assist in the field; according to their gps trackers they were in a place Mammon knew and could get there much faster than any of us," Bel explained.

That did not sound good; it was lucky he had the manuscript of the research on him – damp though it may have been now from before – but suddenly he started thinking he should be in his room with Bester. He couldn't care less if he died since he already gave him more than valuable information but maybe he could catch more people like that. He battled with himself a little: stay here and keep updated or maybe catch another mouse or two…?

In the end, his hunter's instincts won out and he decided to retire to his room. "I caught a mole with my trap; I'll go make sure more are caught in it. Tell me if there is news on your part."

Two gruelling hours later, his gut feeling had been proven wrong; he moved the mouse from his room back to hers, but nothing had happened. He had even installed small cameras in her lab just as she left but there was no breach there either. So for two hours he'd done nothing but sit around a wet room with his prisoner and his lion.

What unsettled him though was the fact that even after all this time, there were no news from Squalo's front. There was no way they forgot to alert him, so that meant that for such a long time there was no news from the outside squad. What had happened to them? Why didn't Mammon contact them? Why were coms down? What the fuck was going on?

Just as he was about to order Bester grab Leonardo's foot once more and get him to the guys, Bel came through the door. "The stupid shark is coming back; status report said he was relatively well but the pervert can barely walk and Misses S is unconscious. Mammon took care of any stragglers and follows suit. They'll be here in twenty minutes."

He nodded; Bel left. What was he supposed to do with that knowledge? Why was Francesca unconscious? And given she's the doctor of the group, how are they supposed to make her better? They'd be here twenty minutes too late…

When they did arrive, he used the cameras at the front of the house to check their status for himself: truly, Levi was unable to walk by himself and Mammon seemed to be helping him with some sort of illusion splinter; it was the left leg. Other than that, he was dirty and smudged all over with minor wounds here and there. Squalo kept one eye closed, dirty from top to bottom, some of his hairs singed; there were some small wounds on his body, too but nothing of import. And there on his right shoulder, carrying her like a sack of potatoes was Francesca. He could see nothing but her ass and legs the way she was positioned, but there seemed to be no blood running down his shoulder, so she must have been simply knocked out. She better be anyway.

Ten minutes later, they were all in her room to report.

"…there's a guy at your feet. I see you caught the culprit." Then Squalo harrumphed seeing the look of murder Xanxus was giving him and said hastily: "the usb drive wasn't stolen; we managed to keep it on us. They tried to take it after the explosion, but we stopped them. There were six of them initially and then another six; they had us surrounded. We managed to hold them back successfully till Mammon came and we beat them."

He dropped Francesca on her bed. "She had it best and worse than all of us at the same time. She had the usb somehow attached to her skin so they aimed for her from the beginning; but we knew she'd be the target so we could protect her better."

"She doesn't look too protected."

"VOOOOOOOI! I had to pry her out of three people's hands, you damn boss! They knocked her out with a dart to the neck—her breathing was fine, so I figured they needed her sedated –. She couldn't really scream anymore, could she? So three people managed to get a hold of her amidst the battle; but I saw them and now those three corpses that will never have their real arms back. I made sure they were dead in case the bleeding didn't do the trick."

"Three people?" he pretended to ask but they could see it was more of a threat. "Three people you say?"

"Forgive me boss," Levi fell to his knees, crying "it was my fault, too! Squalo was fending them off when one of them took her right under my nose! I'm to blame, too."

"I don't care about your apologies; tell me what led to the explosion."

Squalo got angry just thinking about it! "Those bastards were well informed! They were following her and me from the moment she stepped out her vehicle. And yes, they knew what he vehicle was. They followed her around _everywhere_. And when they saw she was in the most heavily populated part of the downtown, they detonated the bomb. I put men to investigate it immediately; so far they say it was a portable bomb, with a switch, very easy to make and even easier to set off; I believe them.

We were at the square—I had revealed myself to her an hour ago because some asshole tried to attack her. At the moment I'd thought it was unrelated, he was just a pervert, but now I'm not so sure; maybe they did it so my location could also be revealed or be at the same place and one bomb be enough, either way. I revealed myself and we were walking through the square because she's the most stubborn person I have ever met and that was when the dart hit her, right here."

He showed a spot on his right side of the neck, maybe three centimetres under the ear. "That takes a skilled shooter. That was when I knew shit was going to go down and I grabbed her and started running! Thankfully, it was the opposite direction than the one they wanted, and they detonated the bob in a hurry.

Levi came down and protected us from the blast as best as he could but he got a broken leg in the process; Francesca is mostly unhurt other than a couple of bruises, but I have no idea when she'll wake up. It may take an hour or a day. Other than that, she's fine. Levi received the most damage and Mammon was unscathed, a reason he's not here right now; he's writing the report."

Xanxus was troubled. When did he go from tossing her to the other side of the room and breaking a couple of her ribs on his own to worrying if she'd be alright and feeling homicidal just because someone shot her a dart? That made no sense whatsoever. "Have someone wake her up and make it quick," he simply ordered, standing. He didn't want to be in the room with her one moment longer.

"We can just slap her a few times and see if that works."

"Do that then, I don't care!" The lion growled the same moment he spoke, as if to call him a liar. "Just make sure she's up till I come back. We need her to take care of the trespasser—there is more information he can give us. Also, have someone you trust go after Paolo and Eliana; they are the traitors."

"On it."

He left alone, the lion stayed back; things went much better and much worse at the same time. He found two rats but essentially caused a small "terrorist attack" at the centre of the city. The attack was unsuccessful but that didn't mean it was necessary; he never would have thought the information he leaked would be taken _so_ seriously. And because this up-scaled so much and involved another family, Nono was sure to ask for an explanation or two, which only meant he'd pry into their affairs yet again. He was going to tell him about the Giorno as a sign of good faith and cooperation but now it would seem like an obligation but he really wanted to play nice and generous.

And if all that wasn't enough, he had to deal with the fact he was absolutely _furious_ that they tried to kidnap his scientist and he feared that if Nono asked him to go after them he'd do it without a second's hesitation.

* * *

><p><strong>AN**: I thought it was about time to give Xanxus a wake-up call, but don't get your hopes up too much he's still, well, him. But the Inheritance arc is coming closer and colser and though we won't see Japan I have great things in store for them.

I really, really promise I'll update _**much**_ sooner this time, I do. Before the end of September, even during August. I promise.


	25. Traitors and inheritors

**A/N**: Here is the update as I promised! See? I delivered! Before the end of August. Don't hate me becasue of where I left it.

Thank to all of those who reviewed/favoured/followed. You're the best.

Disclaimer: KHR is not mine etc etc.

* * *

><p>Francesca was having the time of her life! Her aunt Lucretia was cooking dinner for the both of them and she'd even invited over her family! They would be having a big dinner with aunt's husband and son and her own family: her mom and dad and her three brothers. Lucretia was cooking an amazing casserole dish and had Francesca make rice. They were cooking next to each other, in absolute synchronisation.<p>

"Aunt, will you pass me the salt?"

Instead of the salt, her aunt turned to her looking serious; suddenly, she reached out…and slapped! "Ouch! Aunt, what are you-?"

Another slap stopped her from asking; her eyes wide, she grabbed on to her cheek but the slaps kept coming anyway. Before she could question her aunt's sanity though, she spoke.

"Wake up Francesca!" Suddenly her voice grew deep, more masculine. Huh? "Open your eyes, dammit!" the volume increased and so did the masculinity; Francesca stared shocked at her aunt. Where once had been a nice little ponytail the hair started falling loose; from the dark colour they had they started turning lighter and lighter till their colour became bleach white, almost silver.

Staring shocked at her aunt, she saw her features change, too. Gone were her pretty painted lips; a snarl replaced them. Her nose became pointed and her eyes changed colour. Now instead of her aunt Lucretia Squalo was staring down at her, looking every bit angry and concerned.

"Finally," he snapped, air shooting out of his nostrils. "The boss would have my head on a platter if I didn't wake you soon. Get up and get ready. He's captured a guy who tried to sneak into your room and steal your research." Her whole body went into full alert! "He was sent by the same people with the previous thief; he wants you to help in the interrogation."

"Of course, anything."

"Good. Get changed and wait for his arrival; you'll carry the interrogation here, I take it."

And with that, Squalo turned around and headed outside. She noticed a slight lag in his gait; he must have been hurt. How? She turned her eyes downward out of guilt; she would love to help him but she had a splitting headache and her limbs felt like they were made of metal! If he could shout and leave on his own, he was fine anyhow. But as she cast her eyes downwards, she took a look at herself. She gasped! Her clothes were half destroyed! And why did she feel like someone baked something too close to her and all of the smoke ended up showering her?

Memories came rushing back; tears came to her eyes. Oh no! What about Levi—and all the people in that explosion!? She and her comrades weren't the only ones caught up in it; innocent bystanders must have been blasted, too! And none protected them…guilt and worry seized her. She should have done something! Why couldn't she remember anything other than the explosion and the feeling of free falling…?

She looked around her for answers. What she saw only brought up more questions. She was in her room, which was why she didn't feel to be in danger when she woke up but was it her idea or was the whole place _wet_? A lot of water everywhere! And there were some black patches on her furniture as if a fire caught. Oh that made sense; fire so the systems activated; but what kind of fire? Wait, Squalo said something about a thief in her room and boss stopping him. Okay, he used his flames of wrath that made sense. So what about-?

She felt something soft caressing her hand; she jolted! Turning to her right, her hand was dangling from the bed; she saw the familiar mane of the lion and its snout probing at her hand. "Ah, Bester," she said relieved. When she saw what he was sitting on, she nearly screamed! "That's a person!"

The lion growled as if to say "duh, can't you see" and shook its rear, as if to establish its dominance over said person. She chuckled. When she saw it was a man, a wounded one, she realised it must have been the thief Squalo told her about. "So you're guarding him, not to go anywhere? What a good boy."

She scratched his head behind the ears and under the chin; Bester enjoyed it, leaning into her to show her where to scratch next. She giggled. He was like an oversized cat! Well, a hundred times deadlier and all, but when he was being cute like that, he was just like his distant relatives of the feline disposition. "Now you keep him down and I'll find something else to wear that isn't quite as blackened or torn, alright? And if you see him trying to peek you knock him out again, okay?"

The lion made a sound that could easily be translated as "count on me!" and she laughed her tension away. "My hero," she joked and hugged him. He was always so soft…! She let go reluctantly after a couple of minutes and headed to her surprisingly dry from the inside closet. The time had come to pick another outfit.

"Bester, up!"

She squeaked! Making every humanly possible effort to cover herself, she hid behind her open wardrobe; she wasn't naked but she was only wearing underwear and stockings! And of course, who else but Xanxus walked in, ordering Bester. Her movement caught his eyes; he rolled them.

"I've already seen you in your underwear; stop hiding. Get dressed and come here."

He caught some "oh then everything is perfect" "why don't I just parade in front of you" and "he hasn't" from her – obviously referring to the man on the floor in the last one – and he fought the urge to smirk. Still, he didn't look her way and turned only after she'd come out herself, wearing a black pencil skirt at knee-length, a white shirt underneath a black vest, a tie and the Varia badge. She always wore the Varia badge, he noted.

She came out, feeling good about herself. She loved that outfit, compliments of Lussuria. When she saw Xanxus just standing there, she swallowed…oh god! She soured immediately and looked at the boss. "Do you know why I have a weird taste in my mouth?"

"The fuck should I know? Now come here and take care of this scum. I want you to patch him up so I can—"

"Bring him half to death again, I get it. He's related to the bastards who tried to steal my research right? Fire away. Just make sure you don't get my clothes caught up in it."

A sadistic smile spread all over his face. "Sure thing."

It took three hours and many stitches and bandages to finally get the truth out of the man. He didn't have a lot of information to impart further, how much more important pieces of it, like the identities of the traitors, but with what little things he divulged about the location, their intentions as he perceived them and even how he get to know them on the first place, they built a handy timeline, more like a chronicle, of when these two started turning against them.

During the interrogation they received news Eliana and Paolo were captured, too. They'd arrive here in the mansion for the boss to interrogate them, too.

She'd been a witness of inhumane cruelty during Xanxus's three-hour stress relief course, and despite her initial shock, not only did she slowly become desensitised to it but she even stopped caring when it finally sank in that he was trying to rob her of the most important thing she had in her possession: her aunt's research. Well, her aunt and hers but mostly the former's.

When they were done with Leonardo, Squalo walked in, dragging two people in by the ankles—two people Francesca had never seen again but Xanxus was more than disturbingly happy to lay eyes on. She'd never seen him this sadistic before, it sort of thrilled and scared her at the same time. The two new "visitors" were one male and one female, wide awake, despite being dragged about by the white heard man. They must have been unable to walk though, since their limbs were, well, limp like they were broken in several places.

"We picked them up at the airport," the loud right-hand man informed as he unkindly disposed of both at the boss's feet; they were thrown next to Leonardo on the floor.

Now that they were close enough, they could see the horrible injuries on him. Their previously unaffected attitude was dampened just a little bit but not enough to satisfy the boss. No matter; they would sing soon anyway. There was a big difference between _seeing _and _experiencing_.

"Of course, they were captured as soon as they set foot there. They were brought here ten minutes ago." He paused a little, just for effect and then looked at them, smirking wickedly. "Have fun."

"Tell Nono," Xanxus ordered him just before he left; Squalo nodded and disappeared.

Joining in the intimidation tactics, and eager to play an active part in anything, she appeared behind the boss, holding a large pair of scissors while wearing surgical gloves. "Should I take care of them?" her question was innocent; it meant exactly what she asked: she saw their legs bent in places they shouldn't be bent and the implied abuse and she inquired if she should first patch them up. But how could they know? And that was the beauty of it.

"No, don't. Leave them to me first—I'll give them something to take care of, seeing you like it so much."

"Great! Just make sure to concentrate on the lungs and spleen; I have minimum experience with those and some practise would be welcome."

"Aren't you lucky," he snubbed the two people on the floor whose internal panic increased with their each goddamn word. "You'll get to taste blood instead of bile. Bester!" The lion appeared so fast, he could have materialised out of thin air! How did he do that? "Hold these people down."

Obedient, but not at all submissive, the large animal pounced. Brief shouts of pain were heard by the couple as it landed deliberately on top of them with all its weight crushing them! They attempted to fight back, one even went for a knife, but a good roar in their faces and a fell swoop of the beast's claws, rendered them completely immobile…and bloodied. But this once, not a sound came from the traitors—Paolo passed out and Eliana knew better. She would have to be honest and literally suffer through this if she ever wanted to be released; but something told her that would be a very rare thing.

.

The second interrogation was so much worse that she had to talk herself into not running away every ten minutes. It wasn't just the fact his brutality increased, but so did the new ways of inflicting that terrible pain. She felt like patching these people up and then fleeing with them. Really, it was very hard to watch them writhe or hear their screams of agony. At first he was even lenient with them, but then they dared speak a little too scathingly about the boss and his circumstances. That was when he decided to stop doing favours; because he wasn't torturing them as bad as he could, they saw it as a weakness.

Then they actually turned their hatred and all of their unforgiving remarks towards her; a spineless pet they called her, nothing but a pathetic bitch catering to his every whim and desire. She would usually be offended by those statements but when they came from a person covered in blood mixed with tears and saliva, she couldn't bring herself to feel that way. Only pity would surface and resurface again and again. She even stepped in a few times, averting at least one death with her attempts. Xanxus would scoff at her self-indulgence, calling her soft, saying she was asking for the comments about her personality to continue…she didn't address the subject, not until they were left alone.

A quartet of Varia men came and took all three of the traitors with them. If Francesca's thoughts were correct then they'd be carted off to Nono without a second's delay—one of the reasons she decided to stay her boss's hand when she could.

"So what did we find out? The Giorno family want your research," Xanxus said simply, tired from all the "activities". He ran a hand through his hair, making it stick out even more. "Why? Because these lil' fuckers told them such a thing exists and some other bastards informed them of what the research was about. There are traitors in Nono's close men."

"Why do you say that?"

"Are you stupid? I'm the only one in this organisation who has any idea what it has to do with! Given you barely told me what is was about, I doubt you've spoken to anyone else." She confirmed his theory by nodding. "The room wasn't bugged when you told me, so the only other option is someone from Nono because he and his team were the only ones who knew about this."

"No, I understand that; I mean, how can you exclude the Cervelo from this? They were privy to the details—I am certain of that. They even tricked you into fighting Tsuna for the rings, knowing you would lose."

Maybe there was a kinder way to phrase that last part, seeing the murderous way he was glaring at her but she had no time to be polite. "How can we know it wasn't one of them? After all, they told you nothing of my research even after baiting you; despite how useful or useless it turned out to be, they couldn't know that.

So what if this is their plan? Have someone develop and perfect a way to give the Vongola rings to someone without Vongola blood, exclude a good candidate from the line of succession, push for someone weak and then have another family take over when the Vongola has been brought to its lowest point.

We would be unable to predict what would happen if this fell into the wrong hands—plus, once the research was out of our hands how could we know and take it back? Admittedly, it would take a while to comprehend this research without me, years certainly, but they'd finally make it, with a good scientist or two."

Well shit; he hadn't thought of that possibility at all; the Cervelo hadn't even crossed his mind before she mentioned them. Her theory was plausible, too. He should give it some consideration. Though he would still hold the number one spot for someone close to Nono who decided to turn on them; Francesca's hatred towards the Cervelo was no secret or small thing. He knew it would be foolish of him to reject it though, especially for such a reason: because you're paranoid doesn't mean they aren't out there to get you.

He'd warn his dear father, note the snide tone, for both.

But wait a minute…she said it would take years for someone to understand her research without her; she was knocked out with a dart. "I don't think they planned on leaving you behind," was the first thing Xanxus said after her conspiracy theory. "They wanted to take you with them. That's why they knocked you out."

Squalo had said it and he hadn't made the trouble to think further than that: they knocked her out to take her with them because she was somehow attached to the usb drive. But how could they have known? And even if they did, since they also knew many of the details about this research already, wouldn't they know Francesca was the only living person able to produce something out of it? Thus, the fact the usb was attached was just a random coincidence; they were aiming to kidnap her from the beginning. How did he miss that!?

"I didn't faint…from the blast of the explosion?"

"You were hit with a dart," he simply said, pointing at the side of his neck. Her eyes widened!

"_That's _what the weird taste in my mouth was! You did know, see?"

"How the hell should I know you get a weird taste in your mouth when people knock you out with chemicals?"

She rolled her eyes; yes, that was a correct point he was making but quite honestly she was living with them for so long; had nothing rubbed off on them? Their sadism had rubbed off on her…!

Suddenly, he snapped his fingers, completely out of the blue; responding to a calling she didn't even realise, the lion stood immediately. "Don't go anywhere but your lab and this room till I say otherwise," Xanxus ordered Francesca; she nodded even if she didn't really have to – she'd never disobey a direct order – and watched pet and owner leave her room in a bee line. She released a breath and then made a decision: she would go to her lab and found out what sort of substance was used on her to knock her out and how that affected anything.

When she walked out of her room, she saw Bester waiting for her at the end of the hallway; when she passed by it, the lion appeared to be inconvenienced, but it stood and followed after her anyway. Well, at least she'd have company there! She should find a discreet way to thank Xanxus for leaving her the "guard" later.

.

It took her one day and a half to leave her laboratory. What with her books right there and the internet access free everywhere in the whole house she didn't really have to walk around the house to find what she needed or might need. So she researched all of the substances she found in her blood that weren't supposed to be there and she came up with a very interesting compound. If her internet and book research combined is correct then, this particular mix is used to induce a coma-like sleep, deep and powerful, but not lengthy. Somehow they had managed to balance out the most dangerous elements and add a chemical which would be released to the body last, after some hours, in order to wake the one afflicted up.

It wasn't common, but it wasn't rare either; it wasn't even an exclusive. Anyone could have done it so long they were given the relevant recipe, which was easy to duplicate or make from scratch and it existed somewhat freely from the internet. So…that meant absolutely nothing. Anyone with substantial skill could have cooked this. And the Giorno family might have been small but not that small. They certainly employed one or two people half as smart as her. Also, none of the ingredients had a signature individually or put together and there was no guarantee some of the ingredients didn't vanish in her blood-stream anyway.

She sighed.

She had come up with nothing helpful, other than the disturbing certainty someone knew too well her necessity to the research. Then again, she already knew they were betrayed. With a heavy heart and a heavier pacing, she made her way to her boss. She found him perched over a trolley of the alcoholic beverage of his choice. She relayed the information as less-agitating as she could and…to her profound surprise he said nothing. He did nothing. He only took a sip of the drink he had just poured for himself.

He took a second glass then and unscrewed the bottle. "Want one?" Turning to her, he poured tequila in, anyway.

She saw his expression: it was a mixture of mock satisfaction and concealed anger—the exact opposite of the one she came to discuss. Never mind that. He was offering her drink? _He_ was? Xanxus? She looked at him like she had never seen it before, this amazing new creature in front of her, her mouth opening and closing without producing sound. Words failed her it seemed and she only nodded "yes", still looking more than shocked by the uncharacteristic consideration.

He left the already prepared drink on the trolley; she had to retrieve it herself. When she found her voice again, after she held the glass of tequila in her hands and made sure it was real, she asked tentatively: "Are we celebrating something?"

"Yeah," he merely said and took another sip, but the covert anger neared on overt, the smirk on his lips terrible "trust reinstated in Varia from Nono! How smart of us to notice a leak from the inside, how astute to find the perfect way to unmask the traitor and how brave of you to act like bait! They can finally trust us again."

He took the biggest sip yet; but this once he urged Francesca to take one with him, glaring at her for the lack of alcohol in her stomach. She hastily brought the glass to her lips and had a taste of the drink; ooh, too much sting for her…! Her eyes remained trained on the man though; he was obviously distraught, but so far no disturbing facts were relayed. He must have something more to tell her.

But he took a moment; he drank again, forcing her to follow his example, and then his glass was empty; he walked back to the trolley. Francesca took a step sideways – as she still hadn't left the trolley and he had moved very aggressively – as he poured more for himself and finally replenished the little she had drank, too. He was being clumsy, deliberately or not, and much of the drink ended up on her hand and his. Immediately, almost felt like it was an emergency for him, he had another mouthful. He wasn't simply irritated, he was irritable.

She watched Xanxus with some fascination as well as reasonable fear, still no more than a step away from her.

Finally, he was ready to go on. He looked right at her, staring harshly at her eyes and all of the pain and hate he felt was suddenly as clear as the scars on his face. It was too much and too deep; something dreadful must have happened. No wonder he had to brace himself like that to be able to get it out. "As a reward for our newly-proved allegiance to him, he chose to make us a great service: we are guests of honour in a week from now at the inheritance ceremony for that brat Tsuna!"

The glass shattered in his hand; droplets of tequila sprayed both their faces but neither paid any mind. For one short moment, time felt suspended between them: her wide eyes, looking questioning but understanding at the same time, the narrowed ones from his side, reflecting all of the rage within and the broken pieces of glass that fell to the floor or pierced his hands, making blood drip…she could see nothing but him, his wrath and his pain. The feeling of her heart racing took over and she was numb to everything else. And just for that moment, she knew he could see her concern, too.

And then time picked up again and everything fast-forwarded; he looked away and headed to his armchair forgetting he ever confined in her, slumping in it casually as if his hand wasn't bleeding heavily. Then he took to closing his eyes, breathing in and out from his nose, hands splayed on either side.

"I'm sorry to hear-."

"It doesn't matter that you know nothing else about what they shot into you; the case has been given over to the CEDEF. You can pass any findings to them." he spoke with finality, giving up. He didn't even address her to-be apology. "Does that thing they shot you with have any side-effects?"

"None other than the usual, which have already abated; I should be fine." She stood there a little uncertain. "Don't I look fine?"

He popped an eye open; he actually took a moment regarding her. "…you never do so I guess it's normal for you. Bring me my medicine now."

"Of course."

She walked away, even more perplexed than when he offered her a drink. Was he…was he asking how she was? Did he pour her a drink and then asked her how she was doing? Was this exchange real? Was it? Was it!? What was happening to him? The shock of Tsuna inheriting the Vongola must have been too great for him – hell, even she hadn't processed it yet – that it changed his personality. She blinked many a time before she could come to terms with his unnatural kindness.

She tried to perform her duty that day as discreetly as possible, trying not to annoy him.

"You aren't going," he said out of the blue.

She stopped her hands from opening the third to last bottle to give him his shot. "Excuse me?" She failed to grasp exactly what he was referring to.

"You won't go to Japan. You're staying here."

"Just me?"

"Yes."

"Wh-why?"

"Who the hell will give me my medicine?"

"You aren't going?"

"The hell? You want me to go to see that fucking brat get crowned the new boss of-!?"

She raised her hands defensively shaking them frantically, along with her head. "N-no, of course not, I didn't think of that, I'm sorry." She tried pacifying him before his shouting got out of hand because that was when he usually lost complete control of himself. "I didn't realise, I mean, I thought being there is mandatory for the boss so I took for granted you'll go I'm really sorry…"

He simmered down significantly but the anger wasn't gone—it was never gone, it just lurked just beneath the surface. Anger for being second best, anger for not being a blood child of Nono's anger about being put on ice; he was angry about everything! She tapped her syringe with caution while making these observations.

"I wanna see them try making me attend the brat's inauguration."

"I'm sure they won't, no one has a death wish…" She giggled at her own joke; he chuckled at her giggling. Then she felt her cheeks burn; did she just laugh at her own joke? Like Xanxus is known to do on occasion? Why…was she adopting so many of his behaviours? It felt odd. She sobered at the thought and coughed. She finished with her medicine and left him alone.

She still didn't get to tell him how sorry she was they had finalised handing the position over to the boy. She bet he knew already though.

.

"Fucking bastards all of them!" He spat as he broke yet another crystal glass!

For the first time ever since she started living with them, she felt _frightened_: never had she seen him so fierce before: downing shot after shot of tequila without even thinking about it, while eating nothing. She was _sure_ he wasn't eating because, being the sole Varia member left in the house, as the rest were off to the inheritance ceremony, she was the one doing everything.

During said ceremony, Tsunayoshi Sawada would be crowned Vongola Decimo.

That one title Xanxus strived to get his whole life.

Thus one could certainly see why he was in such a foul mood he literally swallowed great quantities of alcoholic beverages without hesitation.

Well, she never said she didn't understand him. She only said she was scared shitless. He never was that drunk which only meant she had no idea how to act around him.

Would he be the same touchy and over-demanding boss; would he be easier to get along with or – what she personally feared – even worse? She could bet everything on the third, hands down! She was a pessimist after all. But! He was so distressed, it caused her herself to worry; the boss had never been in such a bad state and let her tell you she definitely didn't mean his drunken cursing. He was in such an emotional turmoil it was cruel to watch Xanxus of all people, the usually arrogant and inexpressive boss of the Varia self-pitying.

If he was showing so much "weakness" – as he viewed it – she knew the pain must have been unbearable.

He wasn't even sitting in his favourite armchair.

He was on his bed, shouting and cursing, somewhere in there being some orders that she was supposed to hear even though he had strictly forbidden her from being with him in the same room. He was way too superior to allow her in, especially when he was acting so shamefully but he also feared he might hurt her without realising.

"Fucking assholes, crowning a fucking brat; what the fuck are they thinking anyway? He can't possibly lead the family! He's a fucking child! Children shouldn't be allowed to play with the grownups!"

He downed another shot of tequila.

"Fuck this system! Fuck this monarchy; blood ties and shit! Tch!" he threw his glass on the wall. "**FRANCESCA**! **Bring me another damn glass**!"

She jumped; did she hear him scream her name? She ran from hers to his room, dishevelled; she had a lot of things she was working on altogether and he certainly didn't make any of them easier. What with her newest project of developing a fire-resistant fabric – suitable for every day, pretty enough to make beautiful clothes, and light enough for summer use – she was far too absorbed to notice his cries of help earlier.

"You asked?"

He turned to see her head sticking out the door, staring at him in wonder; somehow that only made him angrier.

"Not only did I ask for you, I asked you to bring me a new fucking glass; is that so fucking hard to do?" She dodged a flying bottle in horror; wow, her boss was deadlier than usual. "Get your ass moving and bring me a new glass now!"

She only stared at him blankly for a second.

...and then she disappeared faster than he could blink. Had he been sober, she wouldn't, but all of his responses were significantly slowed. She ignored more of his howls and rushed to find what he'd requested.

Of course it had to be the _correc_t glass. He was drinking shot after shot, so he wanted a shot glass that was fitting for his drink, too. She quickly grabbed one – not having your boss's favourite drink's glass first on the shelf when your boss is Xanxus was close to suicide – and ran back upstairs. But when she actually went into his room she was more surprised than she'd thought she would be.

Putting aside the shards of glasses and bottles and of course the obligatory wetness on the floor, the smell was terrible: the closeness, combined with the smell of the wasted tequila and the food rotting on the ground...

She wrinkled her nose in distaste.

He wasn't far behind on the "terrible scale" as well: shirt almost entirely undone while the few buttons that connected weren't with the right holes; his tie was nowhere to be seen, his boots were untied, and his hair was an actual mess. Even for his standards of a wild spiky hairdo; even his feathers were out of line. He was sitting up in his bed but he didn't have his usual poise and somewhat regal-looking attitude; he was merely angry and depressed.

And that said something.

"What are you waiting for? Bring it here!"

She wordlessly did as he asked; she was reluctant to give it up at first, but one glare was convincing enough.

"Where's the bottle? If you avoided it then you saw me throwing it—where's the fucking bottle?"

"Maybe you should consider-?"

"Bring me the fucking bottle damn it!"

"You have drunk way too-AH!" She avoided something she didn't want to know what it was. "Right away..."

She returned with an extra glass: she was worried he might have broken the one she'd brought him a minute ago, but when she saw it was alright, sighing with relief, she left it on the bed side table and showed him the tequila instead.

"Pour me."

She did and when she tried to leave, he chuckled self-depreciatingly. "What? Even _you _don't like my company now?"

She was taken aback. She really didn't mind staying; _he_ did as far as she could remember. But his tone made it sound like she was the one doing something wrong. So she re-seated herself next to him, rigid, and took the bottle back. Since she was there, might as well control how much he would get to drink by distracting him into it – this downward spiral had been going on for two days after all - . So, how to better distract him? She could drink with him. The booze would be split between them.

"You're drinking with me? And here I thought the sole alcoholic in your family was your aunt."

"I'm **not **an alcoholic and neither was my aunt. I merely enjoy a drink every once in a while," she said surprisingly composed. She drank only a little; she was not used to shots. In fact, she lied; she nearly never enjoyed a drink so she was used to alcohol in general.

"Pour me another." She did; he raised an eyebrow. "That's not a shot; pour some more."

"…but I can't keep up with that much; both should drink or else is rude. Why don't you drink in the same pace as me—or else I'll probably drown in my own fluids before long."

"Then bring me something to eat!" he bellowed as if she was supposed to know he had to make that offer.

She once again obeyed but took the root of the evil, namely the bottle, with her. Wow, that was the definition of luck, he didn't throw a tantrum! When she returned, there was Xanxus sitting up fully now, his back against the railing in an effort to look bigger and more dignified, she assumed. His shirt was completely undone which was something foreign to see on him who maintained a certain style at all times. And his eyes were mildly unfocused…

That was humongous bad. She gulped.

"Here is your food; only a modest platter of things I know you eat," she warned cautiously, trying to figure out either she would soon wear it as a hat. When she saw he wasn't reacting at all, other than staring at her oddly, she decided to set said piece of crockery between them on the bed which they now used as a sofa.

"Pour me."

And the process restarted. She tried to imitate him but couldn't, not so fast anyway. This once though, he respected her wishes and did not ask for another until she was done. She realised it in awe; was excessive drinking making him so bi-polar he was being _polite_? Right after the incident he asked about her health, too!?

…she should get him like this more often—even if she had to risk her life repeatedly by mentioning Tsuna!

She shook her head. She was being ridiculous. The man was in great distress, she shouldn't prey on him now that he's feeling down and hurt. No matter how freely and entirely guilt-free all the rest of the Varia members, including Xanxus certainly, would do that to her, she wouldn't stoop to their lows. This would be one thing that would set her apart from them because, to be honest, she had developed many of their mannerisms.

"So," said the man with an uncharacteristically slurry voice. When he realized how utterly pathetic he sounded, it seemed as if he battled with himself to speak again or not.

He must have decided to keep quiet till he could string a normal sentence together because he fell silent and merely showed his glass to her; she refilled it reluctantly. He took a good sip. "What d'you think ovis?"

There was a brief stretch of silence and two right eyebrows raised later, she finally got it. "_Me_? You're asking for my opinion" she inquired, more surprised than scared?

"You're the only one here so who d'you think…I'm askin'?"

"You rarely do so I wasn't sure for a moment. But…what do I think of what?"

"This," he exclaimed, holding his glass in his hand while showing around with it "all ovis!" He finished pointing at himself lamely. "What else?"

"Oh."

She knew she should speak the truth or else he'd know she was bullshitting him and get mad; but she also knew that if he heard anything he didn't like, was that murderous look on his face any indication, she'd sorely regret it. She didn't know what was worse though: the fact she knew of these just by looking at him or the fact it made no impact on her anymore? His abusive nature seemed only an everyday occurrence to her now.

She took a deep breath and held it in for a second; she released it and then said "I think you're pathetic," surprisingly emotionlessly.

"Being this drunk, you scare me as much as you sadden me. You're too strong to be so incoherent and dazed…but I know _why_ you're being like this and I cannot entirely blame you. We all have that one unbearable thing we just can't deal with, with our dignity intact. So I don't really mind_,_ I only think it's a shame."

"An' what would _you_ knova unbearable things?" He slurred, spilling some of his drink. "The only thing y'do's read…or just stand there in the background." It seemed he couldn't decide. "No; the only thing y'do's patch me up! N even at that, you're worthless! I mean just take a look: I'm all scars; where's your science, where's your goddamn skill?"

He threw his glass and it shattered in pieces as it hit the wall; the remaining alcohol stained said wall and the carpet. She leaned backwards without realising it. "How 'bout your stupid serum? It didn't work with me anda rings, did it? Is that my fault, too? It's me the rings don't accept? If you'd worn 'em would they've worked? No! You're just useless an' pathetic, always doin' unneeded science."

He snatched her glass out of her hands and smashed it on the ground "completely useless. Just like your aunt. Just like her and her damn annoyin' needles pockin' me everywhere takin' my blood like I was some sort of animal! You just kept me there, prisoner, feelin' better with your sorry selves under the pretext you were also trapped in there. But none of you even tried to help! Djou even think I could've helped you escape if you'd let me out? D'that ever cross your little minds? No, you were far too…behaved and faithful to that ol' man to look beyond your own nose!"

She was close to tears; she tried hard not to let his drunken words unsettle her, but the more the effort the less the result. Her lip was quivering, her eyes watering. He was saying too many pointed things, accusing too close to home, making all sorts of accusations. Last time she heard anyone talking about her aunt was herself, to her cousin. She was singing her praises with warmth and kindness but now he…he was…she couldn't.

"I blame both o'you for this mess, you stupid women. If even one o'you'd thought to set me free…you could'a been queens. N I…n I would've been king." There was so much longing in his voice and so much anger. After a short pause, he turned to look at her, vehement resentment reflected in his eyes. "But now I am this…a man too pathetic even for you to look at. Disgraceful; if I could'a seen myself ten years ago, I would'a laughed in my face.

I'm glad your damn aunt's dead out of her own stupidity; if she weren't, I'd have probably killed her myself, out of spite. Or maybe you should be; I might've killed you instead."

Notwithstanding her fear, her nerves and her own anger got the better of her; with the fastest reflexes she ever hoped to have, she reached to her right and grabbed the bottle. With every fibre of her being encouraging her into it, she slowly opened it and then…emptied all of its contents on his head.

* * *

><p><strong>AN**: Fufufu, I love where this is going. Stay tuned~! And why don't you leave your opinion on the way out?


	26. Game changer

**A/N**: I'm a horrible person for keeping this cliffhanger for so long but I **just couldn't write** the part after it. I had to rewrite it twice because it didn't click the way I wanted it. A million thanks to my lovely mum for getting me out of the tough spot.

Of course thank you all so much those who reveiwed and faved and followed I appreciate it immensely and I love you all.

KHR is not mine etc etc.

* * *

><p>"I'm glad your damn aunt's dead out of her own stupidity; if she weren't, I'd have probably killed her myself, out of spite. Or maybe you should be; I might've killed you instead."<p>

Notwithstanding her fear, her nerves and anger got the better of her; with the fastest reflexes she ever hoped to have, she reached to her right and grabbed the bottle. After every fibre of her being encouraged her into it, she slowly opened it and then…emptied all of its contents on his head.

For that brief, fleeting moment in time, Francesca felt liberated; Francesca felt powerful. Truly so, not the kind where you get when you do whatever one tells you but in your own way, no, this was rebellion. This wasn't acting out; it was acting against—against his fascism, against his lack of reason and his oppression. She was speaking her mind, for the first time: He needed a cold shower to relax, so she gave him one. He wasn't incapacitated or in some way unable to react thus she wasn't taking advantage of a weak spot he'd found himself in. She was simply speaking her mind, unafraid.

And then the moment passed; her courage waned as steadily as his anger swelled. It was so natural a sight, such a smooth transition her becoming smaller, folding in on herself as he grew bigger and bigger, towering over her, that one could have thought they were watching a documentary:

_And after her act of foolhardy bravery, the gazelle became prey to the male, hungry lion._

A potent fear seized her and the instinct of survival kicked in so hard, her heart pounded on her chest! It was flee or die—she saw it in his eyes: the emotions of hate, ire, vengeance, all in their purest, rawest form…all reserved for her. She might not have been their cause in this capacity, but they were certainly provoked by her and her behaviour, too. She slowly retracted the bottle from the top of his head, her hand falling to her side.

Her mind was already planning her escape: she'd keep eye contact so not to alert him to any of her intentions and then throw the bottle in her wake! To trip him while trying to chase her or hurt him and stall him that way. Then she'd run straight to the dungeons where she would lock herself inside till the rest returned and could get her out safely.

She took a big tremulous breath; this was the moment. She turned around as fast as she could and tried to bolt! But his hand caught her wrist and then her eye caught his expression and wished both hadn't happened because now Xanxus was yanking her and no matter how hard she fought against him she couldn't wriggle free! The bottle was taken out of her other hand, the free one, as he brought her closer and closer. Her sole defence was her shoulder that came between her and his chest!

She held her ground admirably though; it took more than three tries to wrestle the bottle away from her through grunts and shrieks. When he did, his hand hovered in mid-air; he didn't know what to do with it: smash it on her head or send it flying to the wall? The dilemma was real and he looked at her with so much fury, for a moment she was sure he would use it as a weapon…! But then, as if something internally held him back despite the muddled look in his eyes, he propelled her on the bed! The bottle was reduced to pieces of when it hit against the railing.

She squeaked when she felt some of the smaller glasses reach all the way to her back, as she was running to get out of bed and as far away from him as possible! He wasn't fully crazed yet, but she sure as hell wouldn't wait around to see it happen. She tried her hardest to scale the entirety of the bed at once, but damn thing was the king-sized of the king-sized beds! He easily caught her by the wrist once more, one knee on the bed, one leg supporting him from the ground and she was in the middle, trying to keep up the fight.

They stared at each other for a brief moment: she was cowering behind unsaid apologies and excuses of temporary insanity; he was oppressing her every thought just by his general look of ultimate fury. Then she looked away and he snapped. He tugged at her hand so forcefully she tumbled on her back! Then he grabbed her by the waist, turned her to face him and dragged her till her head was well within his reach.

She was folding into herself; he bent low, his face only an inch away from hers. He was straddling her now, his hand holding down her neck, but no actual pressure in his grip. Yet, she breathed heavily, fear overrunning her. _This will not be my last moment on this earth, it won't_; she repeated and repeated and _repeated_ in her head trying to settle down. Still her heart wouldn't listen. No, her heart only listened at its own beat that was only growing faster, leaving little room for anything else. It only became worse as his mouth moved to speak, sending all sorts of shivers down her spine.

Wait a minute. Was she being scared or seduced? She was having difficulty deciding again. It was worrisome she couldn't distinguish between the two…

There she was distracting herself again from the really important developments: Xanxus was straddling her with his hand on her throat, staring her down! She felt the weight of the moment crushing her nerves and she started twitching. What was he going to do? What did he want to do? What did she want him to do? She couldn't think yet at the same time her brain was overthinking everything: his one hand, his other hand, his legs, what about his breath? It wasn't supposed to ever be so close!

And then…the most unexpected thing happened: she felt true weight crushing her sternum and all air was knocked out of her lungs! She tried to breathe a moment later, but the air was still coming in with difficulty. Why…? She realised it more than ten seconds after the fact that Xanxus had collapsed on top of her. He had just fallen on her, just gave out! His hands had completely lost their grip on her, each spread on either side while the rest of him was surprisingly in one place. And she could feel his breath coming evenly, warming her neck…and he did nothing else.

She went perfectly still. Swallowing hard, she considered her position, her physical position and his, too. He was just lying on top of her, on her to be exact, breathing in and out. His hands had released her and now were away from her; his knees were pressing down on her ankles. And he wasn't saying a single word. Had he fallen asleep? She was tempted to check but far too tense to go through with it. What if she did and found him glaring in that scary way?

It felt like an eternity later when he still hadn't said anything to her, thus she could no longer resist the allure of looking down. She found no mean glower staring back at her, but eyes closed; the hard lines on his forehead were gone, replaced by a very rare expression of tranquillity. She was dumbfounded.

How did he go from furious to sleepy in such an abrupt way? There were usually more stages interjecting between the two. Did he just _skip them_?

"B-boss…?" Tentatively, she poked at him. "Are you-?"

"I could'a been king," he repeated like the last two minutes never happened; but he did sound accusing "I could've had it all…but what d'I get instead? You and a hellot'a nightmares. In that ice for over seven years an'all I could do's listen to your bitchin' about every goddamn thin' you coulda come up with. Like I don't have enough problems, I should listen to yours. Momma never loved you much, daddy never defended you—well tough! Look at what I got, nearly killed then frozen fer years. At least they left you conscious and able. They scarred me; made me helpless…chained me like an animal. They locked me up in an ice prison. An' my wardens were two fuckin' scientists with their fuckin' toys…

An' all I could see or hear fer years just you an' your bitchin' to no end…"

There was a pregnant pause.

"I really hate your voice," he blurted out in the end, snuggling her neck.

Those two together didn't quite match, but she wasn't about to point that out.

"'T' was all I could hear fer such a long time, I couldn't stand it after I came to; but then, it was the only thing I could hear fer so many years…" He gave a snide snort—she felt the warmth on her neck. "I really…can't…stand you…"

Then, there was silence. Nothing disturbed it but their breathing.

She was stricken though, so she hardly noticed. He just admitted to her he actually _heard her_ when he was in the ice. He had memories of those times, vivid and apparently hurtful. But he also remembered her from then, too. She had wondered about that once both inwardly and outwardly and he had pretended he had no idea. Or at least she thought she'd asked him. Had she not asked him out loud? Ugh, she couldn't remember.

But he remembered her from then. Her chest constricted and every effort at a breath was futile for a little while—she couldn't help the anxiety that came with the revelation nor the eagerness to ask him so many more things! Even if she knew he'd never answer and ultimately she might not pose those questions, simply knowing there was a possibility of that happening made her heart flutter.

And he'd sounded so broken. He was miserable. She had tried not to care, painstakingly so, but it hadn't worked: the moment she found out about Tsuna's appointment she knew he was crushed but he was so proud he'd never show it. He offered her a drink and that was it. He didn't even make the trouble of listening to her being sorry or any of her goodwill. He shut down and kept everything inside. Well, he hurled more stuff than usual so one could say he did externalise it yet that couldn't really be regarded as a legitimate way.

This was.

It was unexpected or unacceptable for any other human being and it certainly wasn't proper, but for them, for him and her, it was. He was telling her he was upset, he was letting her know it hurt him. She wasn't at fault but she was the scapegoat. She didn't do anything but she could do something…to make him feel better. She could, for example, let him sleep. She could get up and leave, but she could also stay there with him. If she read his intentions correctly – if that was even possible – then he wanted her there, if he went to such lengths to keep her in the room.

He needed company, whatever company, even hers.

Or, maybe after all these revelations about him remembering her, maybe he needed her particularly. He said he hated her voice, but at the same time he was edging closer. He said the one thing but she felt he meant the other. She was soothing; she was a balm. And right now, he wanted it applied. So he trapped her there, in a most innovative way, just to make sure he'd have her.

Smiling, she looked to the side, because breathing through his hair was troublesome…

She blushed.

Wow, she was in his bed. And he was lying literally on top of her! He wasn't seducing her or even forcing her to do something dirty but, but, but she was in his bed! And he put her there. She felt her cheeks turning so hot she feared he'd singe his hair or burn a whole through his clothes. This was…this was so uncomfortable! Yet very cosy at the exact same time. She couldn't lie and say she had never imagined to be in this position, but to actually be in it, by his own choosing was…!

For the next hour, her brain became too addled by thoughts that shouldn't even be there **and** her desire to suppress them, despite her efforts of doing so never succeeding.

.

.

The clock read five am. She would have shot up had Xanxus's weight not kept her down.

When she made to move, slightly so, every part of her body felt stiff and creaky. Was it her imagination or did she actually make a sound? Ugh, she had slept in that one exact position all this time and it took a huge toll. She tried to roll her shoulders, relieve the tension from her joints and neck…! But he wouldn't budge. Like an iron ball, he was dragging her down no matter what. And she felt bad to wake him!

She huffed.

Five minutes later, she couldn't ignore it anymore. While she was asleep it was easy, but now that she was awake it consumed her every thought: _your shoulders hurt, your back needs to pop, that neck of yours would sure do with a massage_…

She surrendered to her needs. Cautiously, very much so, she made the valiant effort of sitting up. Great, now his head was in her lap. Well, she could at least work her upper body. But not that infuriating spot on her lower back that was killing her and she just had had to-!

"Ah!"

Bester materialised out of thin air! She was about to remove Xanxus's head from her legs, but the lion all but attacked to stop her. It seemed like it knew what she was thinking and intervened to defend his master's interests. No, his demanding feline eyes conveyed: you aren't going anywhere; you have your duties, I have mine.

He could have spoken to her, so well he had communicated his intentions. Thus, she remained there, surprised and defeated. She wasn't about to test the patience of a huge cat that only obeyed _one_ person that wasn't her. Besides, no matter her mental complaints, she enjoyed the feeling of being needed, how much more by the boss himself. She was proud of herself, she felt accomplished. Because he finally realised just how useful she could be.

Hopefully, he would treat her just a smidgen better afterwards and he wouldn't completely ignore her like other times.

.

.

There were sun rays on her face, she could feel the warmth. It wasn't welcome at all though—she felt uncomfortable, she couldn't move her head away and the air around her was hot and stale. She wanted to stand and leave! But how could she when she had a lion making sure she stayed put and another human being holding her down-…wait a second; she didn't feel his weight anymore; it had lifted. She had every freedom to move around. She opened her eyes wide and sure enough, he was gone!

Oh, but she had slept far more than usual and she felt very sleepy, her eyelids would drop all by themselves and her head lolled despite her best wishes. She groaned. "No," she complained "I must get up! But I'm so sleepy…but I have to get up. But I feel so tired. Ugh, I'm getting out of bed." Decisively she raised her head and slapped her palms on the bed! She pushed off with all the force that she could muster and some seconds later, she was stumbling out of bed.

She slammed face-first on the floor when she tripped on something big and woolly…and soft. And breathing—she tripped on Bester! The lion seemed to stir from his own slumber then and raise his head to detect the issue. When he realised, it just yawned and put its head back down. Because now she was lying next to him, her feet on his back, but the rest of her lay comfortably on the carpet.

…the same carpet that all the pieces of glass, wasted food and absorbed drink were? Right, on second thought it really was time to get up and leave! She battled with herself and the lion's mane that got tangled up in her heels for a long moment but that seemed to be enough to get her blood pumping and make her sleepiness go away. She breathed deeply in and ooh, it really smelt bad. She immediately sprinted for the window doors and opened them all wide, pulling the curtains to the side.

Ah, the air was chilled, so refreshing…! She let her hair down and enjoyed the feeling of the wind picking them up and making them dance. She smiled. Today would be a good day. She vowed to return here before the morning was over to clean up. When she finally moved for the wooden doors Bester stood and followed after her. "Oh? Your master isn't here anymore so you want someone else to keep you company? Or do you just want me to get you some food?"

Bester seemed to be in a mood because it neither complained nor did he grace her with some sort of reaction, at all. She giggled. "You really are like your owner," she observed and petted him for good measure.

When she reached the kitchen she came across a very peculiar sight: there were stains of food and some substances she could not understand everywhere, even on the walls, while used – but unsuccessfully so – utensils lay on the counter or in the sink. There was also a frying pan with something burnt inside it, but she couldn't understand what it was because it was all black. That must have been biohazard!

She stared. Now she had two hopelessly dirty rooms to clean up. Shaking her head, she went to the fridge to decide what to make for breakfast. Crepes sounded yummy!

Wait a second; who made the kitchen such a mess? Since there was no way Xanxus ever set foot in here could it be…that the others had returned!? Hadn't they sent them a message that said there were complications though? Uh, this made little sense. Maybe she should go to the dining room and find out who the culprit of this crime against food was, because honestly there were far too many wasted raw materials in there. She shook her head; better not be Lussuria! He was supposed to be the one who knew how to do these things and not make a mess of everything.

She opened the small door with forts and ready to shout when she came across another peculiar sight that stopped her in her tracks: Xanxus was sitting at the end of the table, the exact opposite of his usual seat and looked very desperate about something, with his elbows on the table, hands supporting his head. He was wearing decent, clean clothes though and he looked as if he took all the baths he hadn't taken the entire past week. He still had dark circles under his eyes though.

Huh.

"Boss? What happened in the-?"

"I was hungry; there was nothing to eat." He looked at her and his eyes were wider than before. "There _is_ nothing to eat…and I'm still hungry."

She was torn between laughing hysterically and absolute terror. "How about I make us some crepes?"

.

.

Squalo was very, very angry. Nono had the nerve, no the audacity, to choose those children to take care of the Shimon family instead of them. Sure, the new rings reacted to them, they must have been designed for them, too, but they were able! They were ready for this shit! It may not be their usual job but if they had managed to kidnap the old man then they could definitely launch an effective attack against those other brats from the Shimon family.

Thankfully, he had people keeping him on the loop about this—to be frank, he wouldn't have left if there weren't any; they had just landed back in Italy when he received the news: the Shimon family, for some reason, now was their ally. That Tsuna had managed to gain their friendship and win back their trust without dying in the process—those news would sullen the boss's mood. Well whatever; if the rings were still there, even reformed, they could always have another go at them.

No matter, Xanxus would be bound to feel better by the time they arrived, for, at the very least, Tsuna wasn't crowned Decimo yet. Yet. Hum, maybe he should leave that little word out during his report.

Not that the fact Tsuna wasn't made Decimo made any of the five feel easier with what they had to face. Xanxus must have been pretty bad anyway: even before they left, he was drinking more than usual, he was less sociable that ever and he hadn't seen real sunlight for a very long time. And ah, the stench of his room will be unbearable; he felt bad just by thinking about it. He certainly had his work cut out for him; once he returned, he'd knock Xanxus out of his stupor.

Steeling himself for a horrible first encounter with the boss, Squalo opened the front door of the house and walked in. the rest followed in a bee line, everyone extra careful not to catch a glimpse of the boss in an uncontrolled environment especially before Squalo made the initial contact. So, cautious as ever, they made their way to the least possible place to meet Xanxus, the second living room, and placed all hope in the Vice-Commander.

They could only imagine what life must have been like for their poor, abused scientist that was practically the sole person he could interact with – and vent his frustrations on. Just for once, they all felt bad for leaving her behind and Squalo the worst of them all, because he felt his suggestion to Xanxus was what made her stay after all.

None of that had any significance anymore; he was standing in front of Xanxus's bedroom door, hand on the knob, ready to go in. taking a very deep breath, he knocked on the door three times.

"Enter" was heard from inside before he even managed to release the air from his lungs. Huh? That was record time for the boss! Was he awake? Completely off balance, the little he had, he walked in-…

Wait just a minute. Was he…no. was he? Or was maybe Mammon playing some sort of trick on him? Hang on, Mammon didn't play tricks on people if money weren't involved and since they were never paid this week there's no way Bel paid him to do it and no one else would be remotely interested in doing it.

So, if none of them was doing it, then who the hell was responsible for the sight he just came across: Xanxus was sitting on his luxurious chair, leaning forward, very concentrated. In front of him was the little wooden table he generally used for his feet but instead of those, it had gun parts, his favourite guns disassembled and gun-care items: oils, barrel cleaners, and rugs he had kept for polishing.

He was…working on something. He was being active.

_**What?**_

"The hell are you standing there for, scum?" The "can't you see I'm busy?" part he glared it at him. "Report or get the hell out."

"VOI! You're acting strange boss!"

"That was no report scum!"

When Squalo left the room ten minutes later – and some of his hair singed – he was somewhere between confused and relieved. He was acting out of the ordinary, but he was more than his usual self around him. Was that a good sign or a bad sign? Was the apocalypse any closer? Should he be worried…? And then he had an epiphany: Francesca would know! Of course, how didn't he think of her sooner? She would know if anything happened—maybe she even caused it!

With new-found purpose he strode all the way to her lab and burst in! She was indeed there; he saw her jump and spilling what she had in front of her in a small vial. That was when she started panicking completely and started using whatever she could to wipe it off before it hit the floor or her bare skin.

"Damn it Squalo, I had acid in there!" she finally said it what he was suspecting after she finished cursing under her breath – rather colourfully – while she strived to make this as harmless as possible. In the end she threw the wasted cloth in a metal bin and set fire to it while shoving a mask on Squalo's face and putting one on herself.

"I disabled the fire-alarm, don't worry."

His eyes, among the only visible parts of his face, widened so much but then they became very small, his eyebrows coming together. "VOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOI! One of the very few places where entirely and exclusively flammable items and liquids are stored is the place you turn off the fire alarm? Did the ordeal in your room taught you nothing!?"

If she wasn't so red in the face from the effort and the fumes, she'd have turned red at the mere mention of that incident. It had given her some nasty burns. They still looked very bad on her otherwise spotless skin. Though the pain had been far more manageable than the time she broke her ribs—correction: Xanxus had broken her ribs. Good god, she had really suffered under him, hadn't she? Why the hell was she attracted to him?

"I have learnt to do it only when I'm here; I turn it back on when I leave."

"You're insane. Also, what the hell is up with the boss? We left him in a compromised state but now he is…better than ever, ever since he woke up. What happened? Did you do something to him? You didn't give him anything weird, did you?"

He was scrutinising her: bent low to stare directly into her eyes, his hair forming a drape to frame his glower even better and no room to look elsewhere—he was truly suspecting her.

"Are you claiming I drugged him? Are you mental? Certainly not! I just told him wallowing in self-pity is alright but only for a short while; then you have to pick up again."

He snorted! "And he heard you?"

"Well…I didn't…actually say it. I more suggested it. You know, through actions." His suspicion only grew and now she knew she sounded misleading. "Also I have restricted him access to alcohol since three days ago!" She blew out the fire to give herself something to do.

"**What?** And you're still alive?"

"He's a child; so long he's fed and pleased he will put up with a mild discomfort."

"Have you _met him_? He can't function-!"

"He can most definitely function without alcohol! But indulging him led to his uncontrollable habit; since you went away and weren't here to facilitate him, I managed to put him on track though. No more than three drinks a day, and only two of which can be different."

He looked at her like she just grew a second head. Adding the mask, he seemed comical to her and chuckled, but Squalo didn't share her amusement. He only stood there, dumbfounded, disbelieving and staggered. She finally had to sober and look at him questioningly, prompting him to speak. When even that didn't work, she resigned herself to picking up the ashes and throwing stuff away. She even took off her mask because it was no longer necessary.

And then, his expression changed to one of complete enlightenment.

He took off the mask himself and just stared at her. "I know what happened…you two had sex."

She wiped around so fast, so scandalised, she chocked by the lack of breath at the abrupt intake of air! She coughed, but her absolute mortification never left her face. When she finally found her bearing again, she glared.

"I beg your pardon! No such thing ever happened! You think I'd—for…wait, why would you-?" wow, had the boss said anything? Cold sweat ran down her temples. "He isn't interested in me that way to begin with! I did not have any, any, I mean I swear he was only sleeping I didn't—he didn't; it wasn't like that. At all."

The amount of him not buying her story was overwhelming. "What was it like then?" even his tone held sarcasm, something rather rare for Squalo.

"Like I said, he just gave up and fell asleep! We were having an argument, so to speak, he wasn't very pleased—I dumped a bottle of liquor on his head" the stages of surprise to utter horror passed from his face as rapidly as she spoke "and just as he was about to blow up he sort of…collapsed; he took me down with him. And then he just slept for a long time."

"…so you_ literally_ slept with him."

"Yes?" He kept looking at her, eyes small and monitoring; his hand rested on his chin, as thoughtful as he'd never been. She felt her panic levels increase again. "Is that wrong? Did I do something bad?"

She nearly grabbed his arm and hanged from it. Her eyes were pleading and there was every bit of a puppy trying to get out of a scolding in them! The moment she grabbed though, was the exact same which Squalo started frantically shaking her off his arm by flailing and pushing. Finally, he believed her but that only made everything worse.

"Get off of me!"

"Just tell me I didn't do anything wrong; he's been acting strange this entire time we've been alone and I feel I star in a thriller half the times! I know I said what I did was the right thing but I feel like I made a grave mistake and now some terrible fate awaits me! I feel like he's been stalking me! Not Bester, him! Just please, _please _tell me I did nothing wrong."

"VOOOOOOOOI! Let go of me I'll gladly say it because this isn't the best idea you've ever had—latching on to me! The boss is very territorial."

She oddly did as he asked but her completely pathetic countenance didn't once change. She was also expecting some sort of explanation for what he had just said…yeah he feared that. What was he supposed to say now? Then again, he was the one who went ahead and slept with her. If he didn't want the fallout he shouldn't have done something so bold with the most timid person in existence. Certainly, it was innocent but how long would it remain that way?

"He **is** very territorial don't look at me like that; what else do you want me to say? If he slept with you, he slept with you. Don't go dragging me in anything weird. In fact, I should go." He patted her twice "gently" – it didn't leave a bruise this once – and moved to the exit. "Yeah, you better be very hard to approach from now on, too or else get used to Bester following you around everywhere. And I mean _everywhere_."

With the last of his cryptic message, he decided this was definitely not a moment he wanted to experience anymore so he took his leave. Damn that boss and his ridiculous timing. They left him alone with her only one time—this one time! Did he have to go and _brand _her? He sighed. Things would get very electrified in the Varia household. Better Bel doesn't get up any of his old antics or else he'd be counting ribs.

Ah damn. He hadn't thought of that; he had to tell everyone to keep their – relative – distance. All but Lussuria anyway. He should go ask the boss about this before he said anything though. Aaaand now he had a fear for his life because how do you broach the subject of "hey boss, I know you slept with your scientist but not in a sexual way so what's up with that" without getting at least one fireball.

* * *

><p><strong>AN**: And that's the end of it. Arcobaleno arc is coming and oh dear I'm so excited! I have it all in my head and now all I need is time to write it and I'll have plenty of it from tomorrow on. Hope I entertained you with this one. Sorry to the person who wanted a kisss but it would have been entirely too one-sided and very unomfortable for both parties; they aren't ready for that yet. Yet.

Also, who else thinks that Squalo was supposed to die in the last arc but was saved due to his popularity?


	27. Fortunate and unfortunate events

**A/N**: I think I let this one slip by not only out of lack of will, but due to complete interest in a manga series. I had only gotten a glimpse of its anime because I knew it wouldn't be complete but now I finally read it. I'm talking about Pandora Hearts; it had me reading volume after volume like crazy. You should read it! Compelling story, amazing characters and...uh my favourite just died again.  
>And again.<br>And yet again.

As far as this chapter is concerned, you'll notice I refer to Mammon as "he" but in the end of the chapter I had Xanxus refer to Mammon as a "she" because I honestly think Mammon is a woman but since this is mostly from Francesca's POV she thinks him a man. Though to be honest I am pretty undecided yet.

Anyway! This is where I apologise porfusely for the delay; I am so sorry. So, so sorry. Good thing is I got my writing mojo back so next update will be within the same month and that's a promise I fully intend to keep.

By the way, here comes Arcobaleno Arc, as promised. I do not own KHR etc etc.

* * *

><p>There was a short spell of awkwardness between the Varia household members. Squalo evaded her on purpose, going out of his way not to be caught alone with her. Bel had stopped being the usual idiot, restricting himself to solely making her uncomfortable while there were witnesses around to make sure his behaviour was well monitored. Levi would speak to her even more formally than before, driving her crazy with the way he'd nearly prostrate himself by bowing so deeply or <em>kiss her hand<em> **every single time** he would greet her. Thankfully, Mammon would simply ignore her, which was good because he was the only one who acted the exact same way because even Lussuria stopped being his usual self!

It hadn't been a week later, not a single week and she still hadn't seen Xanxus. He was going around, she knew he was, but somehow he never happened to be at the same place as her. Where the hell was the interest Squalo spoke of!? Everyone pushed her aside but he was nowhere to be seen. And she was left with a lion, nearly twenty four seven, as a reminder that maybe once he was vulnerable and maybe once he let her see it or else she'd half-think this was all in her head; it had happened in a dream.

"At least you remember it, right Bester? It happened. I _survived_." The lion yawned as a reply; it might have been the millionth time she'd asked that. She remembered that, the first time, he had roared happily! Sulking, she put her head in her hands, elbows supported on her desk. She started playing with some test tubes, filled less than halfway. She was making new dosages for the boss's serums but routine was killing her. She'd half a mind to add something wrong just to experience some excitement.

She huffed.

Jolting, she raised; her body had reacted faster than her brain at Bester's snout landing in her lap, nuzzling her…he demanded attention. She smiled at him, thinking how much like _him_ he was, and rubbed behind the ears and under its otherwise dangerous chin. Yet how calm was he, how content, to be spoiled and be taken care of. Another trait he shared with his master, for Xanxus was the most frightening man in the world, yet one glass of liquor, a little bit of spoiling, and he was the image of relaxation. She giggled at the thought. "No offense taken you fearsome lovely beast, but I'd really rather he was in your place right now…"

As small a sound he could make, he made it to complain but it was apparent that so long she did his favours he wouldn't care. She sighed; since when was she so open with herself about wanting to be with him? To say out loud something like that – even to Bester – it was unheard of… then again so was Xanxus sleeping in the same bed with her damn it! What was up with that? And why was she only experiencing _the bad_ side effects of that? It was not fair!

Pounding on the desk with her fist decisively…she only unsettled the lion and hurt her hand. Ouch. She felt nearly as much pain as when she broke her ribs. Well, her boss broke her ribs. Ah, those were different, simpler times when she believed she was doomed to a unilateral attraction. But now…? She would love for things to go back to what they were.

Yet at the same time, she didn't; he had somehow warmed up to her in the oddest of ways and she liked him being territorial through the lion. Even if she never saw him – not counting the times she had to administer his medication – she **could** feel his overbearing presence. It was convoluted and a tad stalkerrific but she enjoyed it, despite feeling guilty about it. Because it wasn't healthy at all, not one bit.

Heeeeeh, who was she kidding? Nothing about this place or its occupants was healthy—borderline psychotic maybe. Speaking of which, she should get back to actually finishing the serums. She was preparing a new compound for him, as his rehabilitation went much better than she had anticipated, and she meant to tell him about that. Then she might muster the courage to finally ask him about what the bloody hell happened and was still happening between them.

Bester gave a little nudge at the same time, as if reading her mind; she looked at him wistfully.

"I know; I know. I am going to finish the new batch and head to him." She engaged herself with the tubes and the liquids, but soon enough Bester was complaining again. Without a warning, the fearsome beast stood on all fours. "What would you have me do? I'm almost done." She mixed the final ingredients and shook them a little to mingle perfectly; yet there was the lion's snout pressing her to stand. "Okay, okay; I'm ready, just wait! Can't go any faster than this."

As they walked together, with her at the back following the imposing animal, she caught a glimpse of the outside from the open window…and what she saw was unexpected. All five of them were walking to the gate where a limo was waiting. She stopped abruptly, just before she lost them from her field of vision and watched as all of them boarded the black luxurious vehicle. When the last one closed the door behind him, the car's engine was heard. But she never managed to find out exactly which way it drove off, because the lion had spotted her tardiness and was now back to biting her clothes and pulling her forward. Again, in favour of not ripping anything, she allowed it to drag her. But now she didn't know where the hell they were going and why the hell were they all going together. It must have been an important mission.

"No rest for the wicked," she stated as she entered Xanxus's room which was far better smelling and looking than ever before. He was lying on his bed half-asleep; only one eye popped open when she entered. "I just saw everyone going. I wish I could have sent them off."

"Why?"

Was it her idea or his tone felt a little edgier than usual?

"Why not?" The look he gave her was more surprising than scary because he actually glared at her when she uttered the simple question. "Anyway, I uh…wanted to talk to you."

Breathing in as deeply as she could without being too obvious about it, she walked to the chair next to him. Placing her serums and instruments in a small bundle next to him on the bed, she started fiddling with them before her mouth worked. She found out it was far easier to talk to this man when she did something else at the same time because she didn't have to look at him. Which gave her a heap of advantages such as: articulate speech, no stupid pauses caused by her distraction and certainly there were no lingering, longing looks of any kind. Also, that meant he was obligated to listen to her because that other thing she did, yeah; it was important. He couldn't tell her to shut up and leave. If he tried to tell her to shut up and work faster, she had every right to deny his wishes.

Still, the one brief glance she stole told her he wasn't being a bad sport at all, as he now had both eyes half-opened and staring at her though his eyebrows were sky-high.

"I've been experimenting with the serums' ingredients for some time now."

His expression told her that was the farthest thing from what he had expected to hear, as she stole yet another glance.

"I found out your progress is much better than I predicted it would be at this point. Previous time you were half as well but, then again, I must have miscalculated." She was thoughtful now, honestly making realisations whilst speaking. "You know, I must have failed to include the fact I have already given you this type of medication and it worked so not all of my past efforts went to waste that day. I'd go as far to call it a minor—ahem, minor" her sarcasm was heavy "setback. Huh. Things do get better when you least expect them!"

After a brief silence during which he did nothing but stare confusedly at her, not at her words, but at her point, and she did nothing but look somewhere beyond, she recommenced like this never happened.

"So" she drawled "what I'm trying to say is your mixture of medicine just got a lot lighter. Much, much lighter. Considering all that's happened and speculating that time you passed out in the tub wasn't a side-effect, I'm willing to go as far to say your time limit may well be a thing of the past."

Flashes of emotion passed from his face yet none of them was anything positive. Well that was rude! She just told him he was better than ever and he could go berserk whenever he felt like it and however long. Also, she basically told him his system would be far less burdened by the "poison of science" he so much hated. Why was he being testy? Better change the subject.

"So why are they going? And where?"

When his eyes shut and saw him clench his fists, the ultimate sign of self-control slipping through his fingers, she panicked. _Oh shit fuck_, was all she was thinking. "Y-you don't have to tell me if you don't want to," she immediately tried to recover lost ground, fumbling with the last of the serums' order "I can just as easily call them later and as-"

"Like hell you are."

He'd spoken so low, so begrudgingly she felt shivers. Or maybe the shivers had everything to do with the fact he'd grabbed her hand with his to stop the bustle she was generating. She started getting scared. Hello there unexpected bruise and tension, fancy meeting you again. Yet the most unforeseen turn of event took place: something not short of annoyance and guilt at the same time appeared on his face and he unhanded her.

"Give me my meds," he curtly said and extended the same hand.

This development maybe stumped her momentarily but tried her hardest not to displease him anymore and reached for the first serum. She found his palm, put the small vial in it and made sure his fingers were holding it correctly. "You drink them now again, remember" she said as gently as she could without being too matronly "and we're down to five. Soon enough you'll be down to two and hopefully in three months you'll stop altogether."

He drank each one the same way: he always waited for her to put the vial in his hand and close the fingers around it. He was definitely enjoying it, she could tell. He didn't even let her stand before he was finished, made her sit on her shins on the floor. There was something…fishy about this but she couldn't put her finger on it. The moment she stood though he said casually: "I want a massage."

_Of course you do._

"Now."

_Oh and now I am to give it, is that it?_

"Yes."

Perfect. _As if things weren't strange enough between us as is_—wait a minute "did you just answer me?"

"You're speaking out loud again."

She turned a very bright pink that spread the longer no one spoke; seeing there was no way she'd say anything he just remained silent, watching her blush quite satisfied. There was a lump at her throat she couldn't swallow. Her movements were nearly robotic now as she retreated to his bathroom for the oils and other essentials – she had long ago left everything in here for this same purpose – and he waited till she came back to idly say:

"What was that thought you never finished?"

She dropped her bottles. Her throat constricted catching her breath. All the courage she tried to muster before she came here was all gone and now she had to rally again. "I-I was trying to say…" she mumbled while bending to pick up the things she dropped; she missed his wandering eyes focusing on her rear "I meant no disrespect but…I mean-…I'm not ready for this conversation."

She made another realisation whilst talking, again. Twice today what a score! Also, did that mean he actually wanted to talk about this? Oh no, no, no, no, no, no; she wouldn't be the immature one. There's no way he really wanted to talk about this—she bet he did it only to make her uncomfortable. From looking at the contents in her hands, her head snapped to him. He was completely serious though, not a single sign of messing with her; no sly grin, no disturbing amusement.

"So, um, if you still want me to massage you can we, err, not talk about it?"

He merely shrugged; only then did she notice he'd already taken his shirt off. He was surprisingly very mature about this, she mused while she watched him lie on his stomach. She wouldn't have guessed. "So," she poured oils on her hands and some on his back "how come they are all going together? Is it something big?" Nervousness seeped into her words. "Should I be afraid of something? Last time something like this-!"

"We're searching for a new recruit," he stated surprisingly absolute.

This was his way of assuring her nothing was coming her way screaming or burning, meaning her harm, she realised with a start. He was trying to tell her she'd be fine. That was amazing! It must have been the first time he ever did anything of the sort, actively try and calm her. Was his behaviour really changing? It was a little thing, granted, and one that any other human being would never consider anything more than common courtesy but this expression was foreign to her. So if he was willing to extend it to her, in his own way, it truly was a small change of attitude.

"I see," was all she managed after the silence that stretched. He had said no more and she had trouble coming to terms with it. "Is it a man or a woman?"

"It's a boy; highly skilled in illusions."

"But we already have Mammon for that; are we to replace Mammon?"

"…Mammon is an Arcobaleno." That was supposed to mean something to her, if she took it by his tone, but it didn't, at least not anything else other than "Mammon is a special case".

"Alright I guess. Where is he?"

"France."

"France!? Then how came you by this person? Intel? But France and Vongola don't really mix well together; our branch there is practically non-existent."

There was an odd sort of silence. She knew this kind; people suffered from it mostly because of her: it was the type of calm before a storm, a hesitant one that might never break out after all. He must have been considering his next words; he didn't know if he should tell her or not. There was a unique kind of buzzing in her ears, while she awaited his response. Even her heart seemed to slow its beats, as if she was holding her breath to hear something important.

"That day in the tub," he started reluctantly—she could hear all of his doubt "it had nothing to do with me or my condition. Somehow…we received memories."

Her hands had stopped pressuring him but the moment he spoke, she started the massage again. Maybe that was one more reason he finally spoke, she thought humorously; he wanted his back rubbed. Well, humour was good in this situation because honestly, she hadn't expected to receive information about _that_, so long after the fact.

She wasn't complaining though.

"Dunno how; it was some Arcobaleno shit going on. But within those memories, the Varia had one new member, a boy named Fran. He was filling in for Mammon."

It took a long time to say the next words; she might have mistaken it for concern. But as if seeing her, the moment she opened her mouth to inquire why he would be filling in for him, he answered, seemingly uncaring. "Mammon was dead in the future so we needed a replacement."

She drew a blank. "Mammon? Dead!? That sounds unbelievable…but that won't happen anymore, right? Mammon won't…die now right?" dear lord, it felt awkward just saying it. But there was another sort of feeling there, too which she couldn't put her finger on yet.

"The future's been changed."

"Oh thank lord! I was so worried." And yet, the relief wasn't as strong as she liked; that small feeling next to her awkwardness persisted. "Wait, I remember that day; you were all acting secretive. The guys held a meeting even, if I recall correctly and-…"

Oh she recalled _perfectly:_ Xanxus was being a little moody bitch about everything, submerged in that tub, and the rest of the gang had called a meeting in the most ridiculously clandestine way to agree upon something.

_And not tell you_, a voice in her head reminded. _You were not invited_; but besides her only the boss was missing, even Mammon was right there. And by the look on his face and the fact he initiated conversation with her, or simply talked to her on his own accord, she took it as a sign he was thrown, rattled, alarmed. He was distressed. What if they had gathered there to tell him of the memories and how he died? Then why was everyone acting so strange towards her? Levi was nearly crying, saying some things are better left untold; Squalo following a similar line of thinking…

The horrible thought finally crossed her mind.

"Did Mammon receive the memories, too?"

Once more he was reluctant to give his answer. "…of course not." Yet he sounded just as nonchalant as before.

"But the guys told him." He simply nodded to answer her. "So um…he went with them because he wanted to see the boy who had once replaced him, since all of you remember him already."

"Mammon was needed there, also."

"So if only Mammon hadn't gotten the memories because he was dead…then it's safe to assume that only those who had survived the future received memories."

He said nothing.

The feeling of foreboding was oozing from his silence; there was so much tension between both of them she could nearly touch it. It wasn't the good type of tension either. A non-existent draft chilled her to the core no matter the fact she knew it wasn't really there. "So," she started after what felt a long time "if one didn't get them, they weren't alive…and I didn't receive anything of the sort."

He didn't say a word. "So, in this future, I was dead."

He still said nothing. She didn't stop her hands, though she started wishing she had, for she could not see his face at all to try venture a guess at his emotional state. Hers was a tumultuous one and she doubted if he truly hadn't spoken because all she could hear was her heart pumping her blood steadily and a loud ringing in her ears. She didn't even hear her own words! She only hoped she wasn't being too loud. She tried to calm herself down though, because the next part she needed to hear.

"How did I die? And when?"

"…it ain't relevant; that future's been changed."

A second wave of relief washed over her but it still left a bit of anxiety in its wake. A twisted curiosity wouldn't allow her to put this behind her however. "So you do know." He didn't deny it so it must have been true. "I'd like to know, too. Can you-?"

"The hell is wrong with you? You ain't gonna die so the fuck you care?"

"Alright; you don't have to shout at me about everything!" As if, what she'd just heard, wasn't disconcerting enough. "_You_ brought it up anyway; don't blame me for taking an interest at something like that. Wouldn't you?" Now that she could hear herself she realised all the panic she tried to eliminate from within her seeped at her speech and her tone. "Besides, if it was meant to happen once who's to say it won't happen again? I'm scared; I'm really scared!"

She sat ramrod straight, her hands on either side of her, immobile; tears almost spilled from her eyes and she stopped talking to will them to stay in. She hated crying in front of the boss, especially ever since she came to terms with the fact that, yes, she was interested in him. She audibly sniffed and gave a terrible sob. Feeling as though she couldn't properly filter the air anymore, she needed more and more inhalations. But it was shaky and weak; that's how it sounded to her.

"Why—how did it happen? When? Why didn't you tell me earlier!? I'd understand if it was just Mammon but this directly involves me; why didn't anyone tell _me_? Why did you keep it from me? What if I die t-?"

"_**If I'm saying you ain't gonna die then you won't!**_"

She never saw him get up and turn to her but she certainly heard his indignant shouting; her head snapped to him, still fighting tears back. "You need more than my word now? It ain't good enough for you anymore?"

It was her turn to say nothing as she stared blankly at him. She opened her mouth in an attempt to communicate but she closed it again. Her eyes were wide and she couldn't help but stare when she saw the anger reflected in his eyes. But what completely threw her off was the hard to spot but undoubtedly there, planted deep within him, uncertainty; did she really not believe him? Did she really think she was going to die? Did she not trust him?

There was another, more terrible and even deeper layer that she dared or hoped not to assume, which was true all the same: he was worried about her. All those things she said, frightened and trembling, he had thought of them himself once, twice, thrice, a hundred times. And every time these crossed his mind, he always had the same reaction: send Bester to her - who would dare harm a person escorted by a lion? - And think of something else.  
>Repeat.<p>

But now she was the one thinking and actually saying those things out loud; he never dared to do that himself. Squalo attempted it and it hadn't ended well. Now he couldn't escape them; there was nowhere left to run. He was with her though so he didn't have to send Bester anywhere. He only had to calm the beasts in his own chest that raged! Taking advantage of his uncertainty and fear, they made him remember how he too had felt at the idea of that, couple with all those memories he received.

And he had to admit he was…protective of her, in a very possessive, primitive way. She was…"mine" his brain always supplemented as if she had his brand on her skin. And he'd sworn to himself, nothing of his would be lost to him ever again, thing or person. No wonder he snapped at her; he half-doubted his words himself.

It seemed she didn't though because her wet eyes slowly dried; her squared shoulders relaxed and she exhaled after what felt like a long time. Her expression turned from anxious to considering.

"No, I do…trust you." She never truly appreciated how much she did trust him until she spoke these words. What with him being this strong and unrelenting person, it gave the feeling that if he wanted it, it would happen. If he didn't want it, it wouldn't. And if he said it, it must be true.

So now that was all he needed to say and she believed him. "It _is_ good enough."

He snorted at her, like her answer was to be expected; yet, it was this "granted" he was searching for. After he saw it so honestly displayed all over her face, he decided to recede in his previous position of face and belly down on the bed. She took that as a sign she should continue…which she did even if a little numb.

Today was an emotionally straining day.

And it wasn't until she left him alone to sleep that she finally understood he'd been keeping this quiet from her since before the turn of the year…something warmed inside her though she didn't know why. for all she knew, he might have kept it from her because he didn't want to deal with her crap but…the latest developments told her it was kinder than that. And that alone was enough to make the rest of her day.

What also picked her mood up was the fact that she made him tell her where the rest had gone and why without being pushy about it. She was starting to do something she never thought she would: she found his buttons, little by little. She made him bent, however small, to her will. Like a proper scientist, she would later examine the entire incident in her head and write down all the reasons he actually listened to her because her brain could barely function right now.

But she was sure it had everything to do with something she had said early on.

.

.

Everything was wrong.

The timing was wrong; the lighting was wrong; the actual time was wrong; but there was one thing that was right: the mood.

She hadn't been to see him since that day she found out she was dead in some alternate future or what have you – after she thought about it a little more, she knew better than to let her mind linger on such things – but she had seen him in many places around the house. The core team still hadn't returned from France two days later, but they did give a report when they landed, almost a day after they left.

During that time, she refrained from going to his room again because, to be honest, she was running away from her feelings. With him being more than ready and willing to talk about his err, small advance she was completely distracted by everything. She went to great lengths to avoid being called or sent to his room and she found out he actually kept his distance, opting to encounter her only in common rooms. She appreciated it. Though she still couldn't reign in her feelings and she feared his patience would start wearing thin at any moment.

Besides, she dreaded than when they got talking, she'd hear something as simple as "you aren't that special" and "it's not like you get exclusiveness" and quite frankly, she wanted them to be exclusive. But he wouldn't, that much she was certain of. They didn't even have anything—he just fell asleep with her…on her…whatever. It's not like they slept together the way Squalo had implied. So she was at a loss right off the bat. And what would he want to talk about? She highly doubted it'd be anything as sappy as "feelings".

No.

She really thought his "talk" would probably mean a head-on attack, which was why he was inclined to have it in his _bedroom_. The same bedroom he no doubt used with many a women – she met one of them (she actually liked her though) –; the same one she thought of lots of times with a wistful expression on her face, no matter how inappropriate that was. Yet, fantasy and reality are two vastly different things and she was not prepared for the latter, not even close.

She delivered his medicine to him in the sitting room where he was resting, feet on the table made just for that, lying back in his favourite armchair. Per usual lately, Bester followed her there and left with her, too but Xanxus remained perfectly silent.

Next day came and went in the same fashion, but the third day…

It felt like everything led up to it: the broken sighs, the stolen glances, the awkward averting of the eyes upon connection…the furtive small smiles and the arrested looks of amusement, all of it.

She was hurrying along; packages on her desk there were that needed opening. She had deposited them there at midday; she then ran off to prepare the meals and the boss's medicine. Leaving them there unopened only served as a lure for her to return to her lab all the more earlier and engage with her latest orders. It was both equipment and new substances for her to play and experiment with. In fact there was a particularly nasty mix of acids she couldn't help but want to make; the idea came from that time Squalo had accidentally set her on fire.

Not a fond memory. Much of her hair was cut off during that incident, unevenly and more than she would like. She hadn't realised she had slowed her pace but she really had; unconsciously she was fiddling with the ends of her ponytail. Not that Lussuria was out; she had no one to tie her hair in the elaborate knots he made just for her. Because Squalo wouldn't let him even touch his precious locks and no one else had such beautiful ones…though she was extremely jealous of Squalo's long strands of silk. That hair was amazing!

But she had to be getting back at her laboratory for it was already past midnight and the lights in the corridors looked rather ominous. And she hated horror stories and that much more if she were to star in them.

It was that line of thought, disoriented and in pieces that made her so absent minded, she ran face-first into Xanxus. She was taking a left a little too close to the wall and there she ran into her obstacle: her boss's toned pectorals. She looked up immediately, apologising out of reflex but she knew this type of thing was wasted on them: if they didn't want you making contact, any kind of contact, with them then you never would. They were so skilled and perceptive she would never run into them, especially in this fashion, without them not minding at the very least.

Her guess was he was trying to see just how absent-minded she could get; apparently a lot. Maybe he was aiming to ambush her all along though for the first thing he did was stare her down, completely expressionless.

She felt her cheek's temperature rising at an alarming rate. There was no angle at which this man looked bad from; yet she wanted to take one picture, she'd have to delete a thousand! She hated that.

"Sorry again, bo-oss…"

As she moved to side step him, breathing her hasty apology, she couldn't stop staring…maybe that was why just for once, she saw it coming: the small glint of thrill in his eye when he decided; that tiny spasm of his mouth before he made the move; the restitution of the seemingly uncaring attitude when he moved forward. She averted her eyes in the end but not before she decided to step back instead of forward as she wished and follow his example only backwards.

He saw she was mimicking him and became bolder, leading her further away from where she wanted to be. She went so far back, she felt something – wall probably – colliding with her back and head. "Ah," she looked down just for a second and he took the advantage and occupied her space with relish. Though his hands were in his pockets, something she had never noticed him doing before, she felt just as bit as cornered as if he had both hands on the wall next to her head. She leaned slowly back to the wall to put some distance between them and before she knew it she was practically lying on it.

Daring to look up was a bad call: he was so close her nose nearly touched his chin! Cheeks redder than ever, whole face right in queue, she turned away again. "I-I have to…go…" why couldn't she articulate? And was he courting her or something?

"Then why are you following me?"

Though his question made her indignant, it was for but a split second. "Follow you?" she lost all of her nerve when his malicious grin never left. "I…" She started spluttering something close to this is the opposite of following, if anyone is following anyone is you and so on but he just didn't care. He listened alright, his eyes became savage; but the lack of commitment on her part made him disregard her completely.

"I didn't…follow you…I was just, um, t-trying to-"

His smirk widened yet only foretold of troubles. "Avoid me?"

"Yes; **no**!" Fully panicky, she tried to excuse herself. "Uh, I wasn't trying to avoid you _generally_; because I ran into you though I didn't want to-,"

He took a step forward she didn't know there was space left to make and now she quite honestly had nowhere to go as he leaned a bit more; they were so close she felt his breath on her neck. Her heart was doing something nasty to her for she could swear his damn smirk was growing with each of her breaths as if he could hear them clearly.

And then, he reached one hand out at the height of her sides; she nearly fainted as her heart stopped. But the good type; the type "I can't believe this is finally happening" fainting.

Eyes wide, she expected his hand on her but it never connected; relief **and **disappointment flickered in her heart but curiosity won over. What did he do with his hand? She heard a familiar click—she died to look down but she dared not turn her head anywhere away from him or the next time she looked at him his expression would be something even more terrible.

The next second he came closer…but the wall subsided, too as if yielding to him. It retracted the exact amount he moved forward! Her balance was completely lost. The falling sensation was cut short however when his other hand grabbed her by the waist and pulled her close.

"Eep!"

All the sudden changes of equilibrium knocked the breath out of her lungs. Staring right into his eyes as he held on to her did nothing to bring it back, too. Oh there was something so raw and animalistic in the way his eyes watched her she felt her skin crawl. His hands were rough but his touch wasn't. There was the matter of being held against him, too; she wondered if it always felt so good when a man held you or if it was just him. She felt secure and wanted; maybe needed in some twisted way. And what if it was just him? Did the other women feel the same way then? Or was it simply her feeling this way_ because_ of him? Oh she didn't know what was more sinful: her sudden thoughts or that he moved in closer…

But then he let her go.

It wasn't all too delicate, too but she kept her dignity by keeping her balance. Her confused mind though considered this a blow to her ego while at the same time a blessing. Dazedly as she was moving to the exit, she felt a slap on her rear; she jumped! She dared not look back. If she had she was sure she wouldn't leave this room tonight but she still wasn't ready for that.

He watched her go feeling torn: he was seriously considering to make her stay on one hand…on the other he was not the sort of desperate man who had to force himself to women. He always had excellent self-consciousness however and he knew…he wanted her. There, in his room, in his bed, whatever; he wanted her. He hadn't expected to actually be this attracted to her. It was primal and so instinctive he could laugh. Something about her challenged his sense and senses.

He always had poor self-control, too. He knew that also. He had exercised copious amount of said self-control for one day and he was already running low. How low? I-actually-slapped-her-ass-on-the-way-out low. Which was why, it was best Francesca decided to leave when she did or she wouldn't have left at all. Good thing she didn't turn around to demand an explanation with that glare of hers that she _thought_ it was severe or else this night would have ended very differently yet again.

Thankfully, the rest were coming back tomorrow first thing in the morning and he'd have to deal with their reports to take his mind off of…this. Though how could it be she was the flaky one? Preposterous really; he had decided what to do with her yet she was going in circles. He'd never been more frustrated in his entire life—sexually, at the very least. Well, no use thinking about it now; he'd only get even more frustrated. He decided he didn't like his curtains suddenly, and tore them down with one swift tag.

While she was walking back to the lab, breathless and more scarlet than ever, she refused to think about him and what it did to her when all he did was simply hold her – despite the fact she could virtually think of nothing else by trying to ignore it – or else she might have done anything foolish…like going back and grabbing him by the shirt—wow there. Easy with the imagery it did no one any good.

Thinking back to everything that had transpired, despite trying her hardest not to, she thought to herself that maybe, just maybe, she was ready to have that conversation, even if it ended up hurting her or not meeting her exact expectations. So what she had just walked away from might have just been the most wasted opportunity in the universe.

A high-pitched, exasperated yelp later she banged her head on the wall – very lightly though - . "I'm such an idiot!" she announced it to herself, if to ascertain her statement. "And I can't go back now; I'll appear too indecisive. And easy; and probably an airhead. Ugh, I shouldn't have left. Don't you agree Best-…?"

As she looked around to ask the lion, she finally noticed: there wasn't one. That was very odd; did he keep it with himself? Yet she remembered she didn't see it around him, either. How strange. Did the lion stop following her? She came to a stop; she hadn't spotted the lion yesterday either! In fact she'd last seen it when the boss told her of that she-was-going-to-die bit. How very strange. Could he have finally sent it away, per Squalo's numerous admonitions? Though he had never really herd him before…

Puzzled, she found her way to her lab and holed herself up conveniently till the rest returned the next morning.

She didn't sleep; the entire night she was crafting her arguments for all scenarios and possible outcomes from their talk. She had decided to go talk to him as soon as she calculated he'd wake up. She'd take a bath to refresh herself – and shave. Should she shave? Maybe not; if things got there it would feel like she was expecting it and his ego is already too overblown. He may consider her easy, too and she didn't want that either. But she didn't want to be not at her best…she would shave. Or not – and then dress in her prettiest not work-related outfit. Surely he'd appreciate that.

She'd do her hair nicely, too, straighten them for their entire length and make it look extra silky and beautiful. She should probably wear some makeup too, but not too much. She started applying it. And how about underwear…? Something sexy but not too much, just like the makeup. Make it look like she didn't know what to expect – which was true anyway – but she was reasonably modest. Yet willing. But then-

She stopped. Since when did she think like that? Like he'd read that much into it—him! No, she should wear whatever she liked; she wore lacy underwear that was sexy every day, anyway! Why should she be ashamed now? Making up her mind, and wearing her favourite, yet not worn, set of underwear of red and black colour, she inspected herself in the mirror. She shouldn't have eaten that extra slice of cake or that afternoon sandwich snack; she could see a bit of her skin being unpleasantly pushed by the underwear. Should she diet a bit maybe and cancel it for now? Oh look, her stomach didn't look as flat as it usually did either…!

Once again, she scolded herself. _If he is attracted to me with clothes just as I am, he should be even without them. Right? It isn't all that terrible anyway._ Though, the one woman he almost always had preferred in the past was curvy…_err, yeah, but not where I am; she had perfect breasts and a nice ass. My legs are my only redeeming quality_.

She shook her head fiercely and decided to remove herself from the stupid mirror. _No, I'm fine; I'm just perfect._ It won't do to override all the confidence she'd built up to talk to him just because she might not look the best without clothes, a stage she wasn't certain she wanted to go to.

Taking a deep breath, she put on the cute clothes she had selected that accentuated her good features and pinched her cheeks. What if he thought her ridiculous? Annoyed at her constant self-doubt she smeared her hand when she passed it across her face and removed much of her lipstick and eye shadow. Carefully then, she cleaned the rest of and threw her hair back. She was fine. She was fine.

Taking another deep breath she opened her door; she exhaled when she closed it behind her.

.

.

.

A knock on the door distracted Xanxus from his thoughts.

Xanxus had just agreed to the most peculiar thing he could imagine: an Arcobaleno battle royal with himself and the rest of the fighting core Varia as his team. All seven of the Arcobaleno would have their own and they were to be Mammon's. They had literally just returned, with the news that the boy Fran was taken by an opposing faction, led by that brat's Mist Guardian, Rokudo Mukuro and before he had time to decide on how to act about that there comes Mammon with that big request.

He decided to help. Mammon had been a very strong and competent member of the Varia for long, following orders well; she also offered him knowledge of one of the most closely guarded secrets of the Vongola and generally the tri ni sette, a term he came across only once or twice. No matter what the losses may be, he was sure to gain more: Mammon had promised something about Varia rings, too so that wouldn't be too shabby.

But someone came knocking effectively pulling him out of his internal summarization of the facts.

"Enter."

There stood Francesca, hesitant, fidgeting by the door. He looked her over once, noticing her anxiety and the most carefully selected than usual attire. Oh? That was interesting.

He curtly nodded "inside" with his chin and turned to her. Despite being in every aspect most intrigued by this development, he literally had no time to entertain her but he hoped that wouldn't deter her as much as he thought it would for similar attempts in the future.

"Um, boss, ahem Xanxus," she seemed to be struggling with how to call him; he thought it very amusing and did nothing to get her out of the predicament. "I would like to talk to you."

"If it's anything else other than what to pack then don't bother."

All of her nervousness disappeared, replaced by an odd disappointment as her face fell. "Sorry?"

"We're leaving the soonest possible."

Astounded she blinked. "Where to?"

"Japan; Squalo will fill you in." She opened her mouth to say something, but he knew it would be a protest and he had no time for that. He gave her an undisputable look of solemn resolve and she correctly translated it to "go" which she did, downcast and a little watery. He honestly wouldn't have sent her away at any other case, reading between the lines of her well-groomed hair and selected clothes, but the job at hand took priority.

But suddenly the door opened again and a truly curious expression had taken over her face as she asked "what should I pack anyway?"

"Lots of first aid supplies."

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><p><strong>AN**: End~! The end of the manga is drawing near, too but in case anyone is wondering, the story will continue for a couple of chapters after the ending of the manga. I hope you'll like it!


	28. (pre-)Departure

**Α/Ν**: Quick thus small update - well, smaller than my usual ones, it ain't small per se - though I'd have put in more but...next chapters bug things happen and I wanted to give emphasis there so I seperated them.

Disclaimer, I don't own KHR, only my OC etc etc.

Love you all who alerted/faved/reviewed; you are dears and keep my motivation sooo high up.

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><p>"Lots of first aid supplies."<p>

That was the boss's sole request for their trip to Japan. That most certainly meant some sort of fight would take place, a dangerous one if she were to guess. She was deeply troubled by that thought because, well, wouldn't that mean they'd all be liable to be tremendously hurt? She didn't want that. She could still recall very vividly the time she had to power through a twenty-hour operation simply to save his life.

In fact it was so burnt into her memory she winced just at the thought. Good thing was she would have to talk to him now and she'd finally get to know what exactly they'd be doing in Japan…again. Though she feared the possibility of Xanxus going up against Tsuna once more, she had the odd feeling this once it wasn't about the seat of the Tenth. It helped her be more certain of that, the fact Xanxus was nearly as angry and full of nerves as he had been the first time.

She took many a left turn till she glimpsed him: he was coming out of the master living room, followed closely by an extremely old-looking man, almost ancient. He appeared to be decaying, as everything about him seemed derelict, despite his hair which seemed to be quite fashionable. She heard Squalo call him Talbot.

Was this the person she heard many a person call old man Talbot? Wait, why did she have to ask: just a glance at him and she could tell he had outlived the dinosaurs; he could absolutely have met the First head of Vongola house in person, as the rumours said.

She cleared her throat to attract the silver-haired man's attention and she got it; but she attracted the old man's too. His mischievous grin only widened upon seeing her. As his eyes must have travelled up and down her body – his eyes were covered by an odd device and only his head was left to indicate he was doing anything of the sort as it rose and fell – he hummed, quite infuriatingly, with the most gossipy air he could. She had to stop herself from tapping her foot on the ground.

"So this is the young Francesca." he sounded very pleased. She made an inward remark of how everyone under the age of one hundred must look young to him, but she refrained from voicing it. "Greetings to the lady of the house."

Had he not been slouching so much from the old age, he would have bowed—or it would have been obvious anyway for he attempted to do just that.

Despite her initial distrust, the way he addressed her got her cheeks burning a flaming red colour and her heart did that thing where it starts beating out of control due to pure and raw elation. The lady of the house, huh; how wonderfully did it sound. When she understood by the looks these two were giving her though that she must have been gaping or something similar, she shook her head and cleared her throat once more.

"Hello sir. Squalo if you're quite finished I would like to have a word."

"Ah yes, we _are_ quite finished little Francesca." His head had turned away but she had the oddest feeling his eyes were still on her. Also why everyone loved calling her little was beyond her. "I'll be going to Mammon in case you need me later."

Curt nods and small looks exchanged between all three, the man was gone. Immediately, Francesca turned to Squalo a little awestruck. "I've never met him before yet he knew who I was…odd isn't it?"

"It ain't; people know you as the Varia's scientist. Now what do you want with me?"

Why was he already walking away? "Don't just leave! I'll be coming with you to Japan." The look he gave her meant he knew that, duh. "Well, the boss ordered me to come to you to be updated on the new mission." Now he finally did look every bit surprised.

"Sure; but first answer me this: what's with these clothes?"

Her cheeks became fiery red immediately! "That's not important or relevant for that matter! Just fill me in already—didn't you hear what I-?"

"VOOOOOI! Relax, you unbalanced chick! I was only trying to gauge your current relationship status with the boss."

"Don't bother and just tell me."

She wouldn't have snapped if it were any other case really, but she knew he must have known what possibly happened; he only asked to make her uncomfortable. As if reading her mind, Squalo rolled his eyes; well of course he had hazard a correct guess as to what things were between them because she still called him boss. Then, taking a deep breath, he started narrating the story of the Arcobaleno as he had heard it from Mammon. Only the basics of course, nothing detailed, yet it was far more than she ever knew.

By the time he was finished, she was feeling sick to her stomach. "Battle royal? I don't like it one bit."

"We are an assassination group; mortal peril is bound to be in the menu."

"Yes but not with things like these! What sort of assassin engages in such an affair?" She couldn't get the image of the unconscious Squalo, bleeding from places no person should, out of her mind. "Too much danger; anyway do you know if I'm going to be a part of the team as we-?"

"VOOOOOOOOOOOOOI! You want the boss to _murder us_ if anything happens to you? Of course not—you're staying out of it. You aren't even back up you're the medical assistance."

"A…alright." Somehow she felt better at the sound of that. "Do you need anything specific from me?"

"Not I; just make sure you're ready to leave tomorrow by sunrise. Go pack early."

"We're leaving by first light?"

"You are; we follow after a day or so."

"Why?"

"Mammon thinks it best; the boss agreed."

"I see…very well." she had hours left in front of her, that was fortunate. But she had too many; she needed something to pass the time. "Err, Squalo, is Lussuria free by any chance?"

"The hell should I know? Go badger him to find out."

"Oh I am badgering you, am I?" Now it was her turn to roll her eyes. "By the way do you know where I'm headed when I get to Japan? Is it the same hotel?"

He nodded affirmatively and that was all she needed; she headed straight to Lussuria. She found him in front of his mirror, applying an after-bath cream on; he spotted her by her reflection.

"Franny-chan!" He was at her side in record time, a big hug welcoming her presence. He was careful not to touch her where he had the greasy substance, bless him. "How lovey to see you again! And, oh, how nice you look; I see my lessons didn't go to waste." They giggled. "Would you like me to give you a nice spa treatment for the face? I see you have circles dear and that won't do. We women always have to look our best."

Her smile reached her ears. "Sounds perfect!"

"Splendid! Now we only need to go and buy what's needed." She immediately deflated. "You see I happed upon the most wonderful new-!"

"You know I can't leave the house Lussuria. If I am to go anywhere I must first clear it with the boss and-."

"Why don't you ask him then? I have this conviction…he won't deny you. How could he?"

He winded at her; she became even more uncertain. Yet there was something so ego-boosting about the way he was looking at her, so empowering, she couldn't help but puff up her chest and go! After all, the worst that could happen would be to, well, be refused.

She was allowed inside as soon as she had knocked but when she was spotted, he appeared to be angered: she noticed a twitch at the corner of his mouth and then he promptly turned away from her.

"Err, I was wondering if I can go downtown with Lussuria to shop. He said something about a mask and a facial treatment…but I want ingredients for the first aid kits." She made something up quickly; she really wanted to go. It wasn't even a lie if she really thought about it. "Not to mention I need to restock those cupboards before I leave and since I'll be leaving first thing tomorrow…"

He might not have seen the anticipation in her eyes, but he sure heard it in her voice. He smirked but made his expression neutral when he faced her. "You can go." She beamed at him! "Mammon will be footing the bill; said'll take care of anything that has to do with this."

"Amazing! Thank you Xanxus." Only when his eyebrow rose did she come to the realisation she called him with his first name…and became so ashamed she wanted to bury her face in the floor below. "Err, eh, I mean-."

"Go Francesca. Be ready for tomorrow."

She felt something warm and tingly spread inside her, from her heart to the rest of her; had he just called her…by her name? Had he just called her by her real name? Did Xanxus just call her Francesca? Her heart swelled; she thought it'd burst out of happiness! It sounded so wonderful to be uttered by him so…casually. Because really; he remembered her name.

"Right…" A dazed, stupid smile came to her lips. "Bye for now."

If anyone came up behind her and snapped her neck right now, she honestly would have died a happy person. So overwhelmed was she that the morning rejection felt like a thing of the distant past. She literally breezed by two hours of shopping with Lussuria, too despite his constant inquiring as to what has put such a smile on her face. Due to her shy nature, she would have dropped it a long time ago and deny she was ever this happy but now she really didn't care. How can one simple word change so much, she mused; how intimate did it feel to be addressed as such.

If anyone saw her, they would have guessed she was being ecstatic over the new bags Lussuria bought for her, or that lovely coat he just couldn't see on anyone else but her; or maybe because they saw her carry many, many small white boxes that to anyone would look like jewellery – when in fact they were medicine supplies – but that wasn't the case.

The real case was…there was this possibility her hopes weren't that slim; there was this very real chance. And somehow it was all she could think about.

She stayed for Lussuria's facial spa treatment though; she wouldn't miss it for the world.

.

.

She finished all of her packing around nine. Only then did she dare venture outside her room. She had to administer the boss his medicine and she had completely neglected it! Ironic really, if one thought he was all she could think about today. Granted, she wasn't thinking of him as a patient.

Would he be different with her tonight she wondered? Should she look forward to an actual goodbye…?

She knocked on his door and waited; after what felt like a very long time, she heard the familiar word of approval and opened the door. As she walked inside, there was the boss on his armchair, leaning forwards. Gun parts were stretched on the table in front of him and he was currently fiddling with the barrel.

Surprised as she was to see him do something like that, she still came closer, serums in hand. "I brought you your medicine. I brought you five days' worth of medicine too—please don't neglect to take them tomorrow. I've put numbers on them so you won't have a problem with the sequence this once."

He nodded, never looking up.

Hesitant, she took a step towards him. But then she looked behind her again, at the open door; should she leave? She appeared to be a nuisance. Yet if he was in any way annoyed by her, she knew for a fact he'd already have sent her off. So she took another step closer to him. But why did he have to be so preoccupied by his current engagement that he wouldn't even spare her a glance? She leaned backwards, but still took a third step to him.

"In or out; don't hover there."

Her steps were very small indeed, she noticed. "In" she decided and after she carefully closed the door behind her she was sitting next to him in seconds. She was actually sitting on the arm of the luxurious chair watching him. After she carefully left tomorrow's medicine on the bed, she turned her attentions back to him. His movements were very familiar to his hands for they appeared to do everything with practised precision. She found herself distracted by him but most importantly, she found herself entertained.

It'd been a long while later that she saw his right hand leave the gun or the parts and extend in front of her. Without thinking too much about it, she gave one of the serums to him. He drank; then he repeated the gesture a fact that only made her repeat her own movements, too. Before she had time to make the connection of what she was doing, she no longer had a reason to remain in the room for her hands were empty.

All the meds were gone.

He didn't seem to care though; once she was finished with the tiny bottles, he retracted his hand and put it to good use again. He made no comment about her being there, though; he let her be by his side.

This whole moment felt very…familial to her. She remembered all those times she'd curiously peer over her aunt's shoulder to find out what she'd been doing and how in order to replicate it herself later. It also reminded her the times her aunt would sit like this and peer over Francesca's shoulder in an effort to supervise or teach her niece something. Fond memories of her aunt teaching her about DNA and RNA, differences and functionalities came rushing back to her.

She felt more at peace these passing minutes than she'd ever had in this home.

There must have been something very different that had nothing to do with guns or tomorrow on her mind or else she wouldn't look this content just by watching him maintain his twin guns. In fact, he was upgrading them to hold more power, a task which would easily take the whole night and then some—one of the reasons he couldn't leave at the same time as her. He frowned suddenly; he didn't mind her presence one bit but soon enough she'd start getting bored – and probably ask him many things – but he didn't want to be bothered.

"I'll be at it all night," he warned yet it sounded more of a goodbye.

"I don't mind…"

There was no more talking after that; she simply sat there next to him, making him put extra effort in staying focused. He didn't particularly mind her presence; in fact it somehow raised and kept his spirits up. Still, he could feel her right there, by his side, unmoving. The fact he kept her entertained by doing virtually routine work was…unfamiliar to him. At least she didn't bother him at all and he had as much time as he wanted to think about this…

But then she did bother him: it must have been an hour when he felt her slide on the arm; her side collided with his. Then her head fell on his shoulder. She wasn't talking but she wasn't doing anything to remove herself either. Was this…some weird pass at him, literally falling on him?

A minute passed; a second; she did nothing else, but still rested against him. A mixture of annoyance and amusement stirred inside him, how forward of her but what terrible timing. But five minutes later annoyance won out and he turned to her thunderous…only to find her breathing in that small rhythm unperturbed by his admonishing eyes as hers were closed.

She had fallen asleep!

He was stricken. An odd sense of achievement came over him: he had never seen any woman sleep in his presence before, for any reason – not counting physical exertion –. Also, considering it was him who had fallen asleep literally on top of her not too long ago, but she had never done anything of the sort, there was the sense of score keeping, too: from zero to one now it was even.

He smirked at himself; who would have thought she'd ever feel so safe with him? It was a real fear she'd never get to that point as all she had been doing was run away. And there was some merit in her face the way she looked so peaceful…

Oh no; the scene was turning way too familial! He stood up abruptly – yet had the instinct to keep her from falling – and grabbed her by the waist. Without much thought, he put her on his shoulder, belly-down legs up front, and marched to her bedroom.

Suddenly, he was struck with how easily her life could end; the fragility of human life had never been a concern for him, instead it was a convenience. It was an odd feeling for him, to worry about that; what if anyone did anything to her while she was overseas alone? He was sending her before everyone else not because Mammon wanted to but because he was worried anyone might attack them; yet what if some creep decided to prey on her at Japan? She was to be escorted by two low ranking Varia members at all times of course but the walk from the gate till the limo was long…

And if anyone ever looked for the most paranoid person in existence, that would be him! What was he even thinking? Angry at himself, he kicked her door open, reached the bed in question, tore the covers off with one swift move, _threw _her on it…and then put the covers back on. He checked to see if she was still sleeping; she was. _Flawless_, he thought to himself satisfied and swaggered out.

The moment the sound of his footsteps were gone, she allowed it to herself to roll her eyes with a smile on her face. Her eyes had snapped open the moment he took a rather bumpy left turn at the corridor but he never noticed. It was a very bumpy ride in fact, but she hoped there would be more to come.

With her last thoughts being good ones, she drifted off to sleep.

.

=:=:=:=

.

One minute she was sleeping and the next she was in a hotel room in Japan. Well, a suite, rather; she was standing in the middle of their luxurious suite. The whole floor all to themselves, again. She vaguely recalled the man at the desk calling her by her name.

Of course the matter remained on how the hell did she find herself here? She remembered opening her eyes and seeing silvery-white; there was a loud voice then and someone yanked her out of bed…she vividly recalled the feeling of the fluffy carpet on her face. Ah, it was so soft…! But, yes, she was pulled to her feet and driven out of the room; she was so sleepy she could hardly claim she did it on her own.

Two people hugged her; she remembered because the two hugs were consecutive and one person pried her away from the first. She was unceremoniously stuffed inside a taxi and led through a gate. Someone guided her while another carried her luggage for her since they were all there next to her.

And then everything was hazy…without further ado, she found something soft and crashed head-first into it; the sweet sensation of oblivion took over immediately! It didn't last long though, as a person came in and informed her, all politeness and manners, she was supposed to be housed in the floor right under this one, in the room 1112.

"But I just got here…the rest won't be coming for a day or so…lemme sleep."

"I'm sorry but we can't do that, dear guest. Would you please relocate to the designated room?"

She groaned; the man at the entrance remained unyielding. "Yes, alright; can you get my stuff? I'm too tired-."

Out of apparently nowhere, the people who escorted her to and from the airport grabbed her luggage and started leading the way. "That works, too." She stood up and followed the two men.

It took nearly three more days to actually see them again. Not that she had any time to miss any of them, no; she was far too preoccupied with her own duties and of course—she had to brush up on her Japanese! How could she forget it? She had neglected her studying completely! She was nearly hyperventilating when she remembered.

So she ordered for someone to bring her the same book she was supposed to be studying, without her little notes sadly, and started reading avidly.

So when one afternoon the door opened wide and a screaming Squalo burst through the door, she was actually scared out of her skin! "Oh my God, you gave me a fright! Why can't you knock!?"

"Why can't you come upstairs!? We've been here two days! You need to be debriefed."

"I hadn't realised the passage of time, forgive me." She didn't sound apologetic at all. "I'm coming, go now."

"Aaaaah, hell no; you're coming with me and if you need a minute I'm taking it with you. I ain't going down there without you. The boss is in a good mood, sort of, but he'll be pissed if he sees me alone and I ain't getting burnt for your sake."

She laughed; despite feeling very self-conscious at is actual words, it was such a relief to see him so normal with her. Also, he had the whole "don't fucking shoot the messenger" vibe which was so adorable in its own way. Plus, she could swear he was here on his own initiative, probably because he got tired of seeing the boss being an asshole.

"I'm finishing up and we're going."

"Hurry up!"

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><p><strong>AN**: Like I said, small chapter but plenty of interaction between the two of them; need to see them together a little more, you know? Stir things up a bit, feelings and insticts.

Anyway, that was it! New update will take a while, a month or so.

Please leave a review on your way out~!


	29. Ill fates manifest

**A/N**: Woooooooooooooooooow. I am so very sorry for the one month added to the waiting period. I'm inexcusable...yet I;ll list my esxuces anyway. I had much less time on my hands to write and what I did have, which wasn't little to be honest, I was too preoccupied with thinking about the manga and how it went there and how my scenes should match and how I should follow and my brain just melted each time. When I stopped thinking, I pumped it out immediately. I'm so bad...

Many many thanks to those who reviewed, faved and alerted but a million thanks to the wonderful** bravewings** who kept making an appearance and pushed me to write this. Thank you so much. You kept my motivation going when I thought it was all but spent.

So now on with the chapter. I do not own KHR etc etc.

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><p>There are only a handful of things in this world more horrid than visiting a room that <em>you know <em>is full of people that love and finding it closely resembling a scene out of an urban battlefield and one of those things are finding said people's bodies here and there, seemingly lifeless; but even worse is not finding them at all!

Her heart had literally stopped beating for more than five seconds when she heard the blast and felt the vibrations of it…but when she entered the penthouse, sometime later and found nothing, she could feel her insides squeeze and freeze. There was literally only floor and some furniture, no roof—_**no roof**_! What's happened to blow away the freaking roof? Where had everyone gone?

And just as she was about to hyperventilate a gruff "the hell _you_'re here?" snapped her out of her worry-induced near-fit. But where had the voice come from? There was only rubble and absence…slowly, like she was in a desert and the heat had obscured her vision from something significant, she started making out the figures of people: her boss was right there at his chair, in the company of everyone else; they were all alive!

A huge, unlady-like, sigh of relief escaped her and she ran to their side. Her inspection commenced at the same time. Surprisingly Xanxus was unharmed and so was Squalo for the most part; it was the rest that were hurt but not in a life-threatening way, maybe a little beat-up. Mammon was nowhere to be seen though.

"Well, you gonna help us or what?"

She realised it was Squalo who had been complaining and with a chuckle of disbelief she made her way to him, medical supplies in hand. "I am so overjoyed you all look no more than a little rough housed. When the roof-!"

"I blew up the roof," the boss owned up to it immediately "it wasn't hostile activity."

"He went all out for this one, in comparison with other times; also, we beat one team…! In a way." She nodded as she was already tending to Lussuria. "Well, the opposing team lost anyway."

"That's a huge relief! How many are left now?"

Levi rushed to answer. "Six the most; we were seven in total."

"But don't forget Mammon ran off suddenly;" Lussuria reminded "Skull team was obliterated and another, with an Arcobaleno called Bermuda von Veckenschtein took their watches and replaced them. Also team Yuni lost."

_Levi was stricken. "When did that happen?"_

"_You were out more or less," Bel informed him._

"Then five, huh? That's even better."

"No." Squalo was absolute. "It was an ugly thing; they were all nearly killed, way too much of an overkill. Something bad happened."

Her look of concern mixed with fear showed everyone exactly what she was thinking about; Lussuria glared at their commander as if to reprimand him, but he only shrugged unapologetically. "It's better for her to know than be blindsided if anything happens."

The stolen glance to the boss went unnoticed by most – maybe on purpose – but he still gave it; but if the boss didn't blow up, it meant he was in agreement.

She missed all of that though, because she was now fighting her own battle with her ointments. "Ugh, I had to have put the cream for the pain at the bottom, hadn't I? In my defence, bandages are at the top; thought you'd need them. Luckily, you don't!"

She never noticed the transition from battlefield to the room it once was when she rummaged through her case; she realised only after she had finished with the self-appointed mama of the squad. Oh; this must have meant Mammon was fixing things! That was extremely considerate of him.

"I see Mammon is helping so things will look normal, huh?"

"It's not Mammon," Squalo corrected immediately "we have a 10-man illusionist team at hand to help mask the destruction; they came here a little after we did."

"Whom did you fight anyway?"

"…Fon, Hibari Kyouya and Dino Chiavarone."

"Oh." She remembered Dino; she had liked him. "And I hear they are defeated; that must be the reason why you are all so…intact."

"Dino didn't lose his watch, he wasn't in the same team as the other two; he only came to stop Hibari from getting in over his head. Well, he tried at least."

"Is he alright? Are they all well?"

Xanxus started getting angry. "The hell you care? They are an opposing team."

"Exactly: _team_; not a real enemy. As I recall Hibari Kyouya was very young and Dino well, he isn't…an enemy…at all." She still felt she owed him for keeping Squalo alive. "He's even helped us in the past. He's simply on the opposing team."

Oh god, the glare she was receiving; Xanxus eyes were piercing! She couldn't see it because she was far too preoccupied with Levi's arm but Squalo was more than exposed to it. He felt a lump at his throat. Dino was actually a good friend of his, as far as friendships outside of his duties go but how could he even mention it in this environment?

"We ain't comrades though so don't get too comfortable."

"With what; _him_? I barely know he guy; I just think it's a waste to be killed. He's good people. He did save your life Squalo."

She said that with some double meaning.

"Anyway; if you hadn't imposed that ridiculous condition that I am to stay in my room until at least twenty minutes after the fray, I could have come to you much sooner. Things like this make me wonder if you _want_ to stay alive."

Squalo snorted as audibly as he could. "Lines like these make me wonder if you do."

"Oh shut up…now you're barely injured but how do you fair if there's something graver than scratches and bruises? Didn't you just say the new team that replaced team Skull is dangerous?"

"If they are dangerous for us they most certainly are for you, too so you _better_ stay away…"

Being protective was fine, but overprotection like this could drive her crazy; and it wasn't just the boss, it was freaking everyone! From Squalo to Belphegor—even Belphegor! But she knew this whole ordeal wasn't relevant to her, so she decided to just do as they want; once Mammon gotten what he wanted, she'd ask for explanations.

The rest of the ten minutes it took her to look at everyone else, no one said a word. It was a quick affair and in the end, they announced she was no longer needed; well, at least they didn't say "no longer desired" that was something. She looked at everyone pleadingly despite her orders, in case they felt sorry for her and allowed her to stay, but not even one person was swayed—not even Lussuria. She hadn't dared to look at Xanxus though.

.

It was such irony; the moment she entered her room downstairs and closed the door behind her that was when she felt it. Strong shock waves shook her to the core; shouts of pain and war cries – undoubtedly from Squalo – could be heard all over the place, from one side of the upstairs room to the other! Fear pierced her to the core but her first instinct was still to run back up.

Yet she stopped. She knew if she went there now…there would be danger. Danger she definitely could not handle. So she took big calming breaths, air shaking as she exhaled every time, forcing herself to sit down. And then she started counting. She counted in breaths: one breath three seconds; ten breaths and the clutter could still be heard; twenty breaths.

She'd reached fifty three breaths when she realised that everything had stopped, for no other reason than her door burst open and the Varia elite started pouring in one after another; she'd tried to block out all foreign sounds, listening to her own heartbeat instead. And then they finally came and oh dear lord, everyone was hurt! Mammon literally _flew_ in, the only one untouched, while Squalo was helping the less fortunate ones such as Levi and Lussuria. He wasn't fine himself though: he was clearly limping and had bruises and an ugly cut on his face.

Belphegor followed suit, almost crawling, but somehow still on two legs; and then came Xanxus, last but not least, sporting a still bleeding trauma to the head and a very inflamed eye that must have been hurting like hell.

She sprang into action the moment she set eyes on the first wounded.

She knocked down everything there was on her king-sized bed and couches in an effort to be helpful and efficient; she missed the low-ranking Varia members who came in carrying beds, like those one usually saw in hospitals. She rushed to the make-shift medicine cabinet and tore through her supplies; the bandages and antiseptics were prominently placed but the 'sawing kit' was deep in.

"Please let them down gently" and "don't touch anything that appears broken sore or is actually bleeding" and "don't you dare" were the only things that would come out of her mouth for more than ten minutes. Until finally she had them all in beds and couches, seated or lying down.

After closer inspection, everyone was nowhere near the tragic state she feared when they first walked in, but, in her defence, the previous scene of the place completely blown up and the fact they all looked haggard gave her the wrong impression. After all, Xanxus was _bleeding_. If boss bled then something had gone bad.

Despite her initial relief at their obviously not life-threatening injuries, nothing else seemed convincing they were going to be alright: she felt like walking on eggshells the way people looked off into the distance or simply away from her and the expressions of irresolution on their faces. Lussuria was being uncharacteristically silent, though indeed exuberant when he did come to speak, Levi had lost his nerve and Belphegor was something close to not sulking about anything.

Mammon was fussing about, checking and double-checking information and facts over the phone and Squalo just wouldn't sit still, despite the fact he actually needed a crutch to support him! He was the only one who just never dis as he was told and actually tried to help her with healthcare.

And just as she was ready and everyone was finally settled in, Squalo made a triumphant exclamation.

"AHA! I can still take part in the Representatives Battle."

She was so absorbed with her tasks, she nearly dropped a scalpel!

"Really Captain Squ?"

"Of course! There's no rule saying that if your watch is destroyed you can't fight with a spare one!" Instead of using his crutch as a, well, crutch, he mostly used it as an extension of his hand. "In this case, since I'm the strongest and healthiest of the executives," how she held in the snide comment of '_why don't we change that, of course'_ "I'll have my comeback!"

She did spare time to glare at him, but he didn't seem to notice.

"You shouldn't overdo it though…you're a wreck as well."

_Thank you Lussuria; finally someone who listens to reason, aka me._

"That fucker Bermuda!"

"This already is a big loss for the Varia though; can't you do anything about it Mammon?"

"I'm doing a lot," he complained. "I'm doing my best even now…!"

This was the first time Francesca had ever seen him so tenacious and passionate about anything; in fact, she couldn't remember another instance where he had to raise his voice. So this must have been truly serious. It was no wonder the boss decided to intervene with a less nonchalant than usual "Mammon."

Mammon had turned right away, almost as panicky as Francesca was. Yet Xanxus's face was nowhere near the exasperation or the anger they feared to face; he was simply…reassuring.

"It's not that bad. It's just a few more assholes to wipe out."

Something horrible happened inside her at that moment. If the boss went out of his way to try and be nice to Mammon…the most terrible gut-feeling she ever had lurched at her stomach. Where things only going downhill from here on out? And why did this feel like this was the last thing he should have said?

She finally mustered the courage to look at him and she noticed him turning his eyes away from her just as she was raising hers; why wouldn't he look at her? One more reason for her to assume something wasn't going to be quite as right as she'd wish.

She dared not linger behind, and disappeared behind the bedroom door and layers upon layers of blankets as soon as she was able.

The next day did nothing but fuel her worries because now they were warranted. When Xanxus agreed to speak and maybe cooperate with _Tsunayoshi Sawada_ of all people then things had to be horribly tipped against them in the scale of power. That was never good because…she knew what sort of power Xanxus had—both raw and refined, his power levels were ridiculous. What sort of monster were they facing that they needed to unite in order to survive—if it wasn't a matter of survival Francesca knew Xanxus would be too proud to concern himself with alliances.

And when she found out she was not allowed to attend the meeting she was about to flip her switch!

Squalo expertly repurposed her though, by cleverly implying she wasn't left behind due to lack of tactical skills but rather due to an abundance of medical knowledge that'd be in much better use to everyone right where they left her than with them. After all, she had to prepare for a lot of people because one of the conditions would be that she'd provide first aid to everyone on their side – a thing she more than willingly would agree to – thus she had no real other reason to join them.

"I mean, really now Misses S," he'd said airily, finally without the crutch "there's no way you'll say no to taking care of someone and that aside you really have nothing else to contribute. Strategies and the like will be decided by the heads."

"I suppose that is true."

"So better start preparing for everyone cause everyone's a lot. I've brought you all of their medical files on a USB; check everyone for allergies or whatever, okay?"

"Oh you brought me prep-work! I love prep-work," she had to explain due to the confused look Squalo was shooting her.

"Right; get to it then. We'll need you ready by tomorrow."

She stood at attention. "Yes, vice-captain."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah; get to work." Rolling his eyes as he passed her, she snuck in a little nudge with her shoulder wherever she could reach. When he turned to show his displeasure, she simply stuck her tongue out.

The single thought that surfaced that moment was: _I am surrounded by children_. Yet, he still went to fight for a child and she simply went back to her duties, with more work than before, but oddly satisfied by it. And for the next two days, while everyone was prepping for war or fighting, she didn't even leave her hotel room.

.

.

.

When her phone rang, she was reading up on new techniques for stitching; it was in arm's reach so she didn't even have to get up from the armchair she had nestled in, with her blanket and her fragrant cup of delicious chocolate. She put the book in her lap and the dictionary on the floor – it was in Japanese, the damn thing, and since her Japanese were poor she had to rely heavily on the pictures and the dictionary – but held on to her cup because she had every intention of taking a sip just before she answered.

A thing she did and then promptly asked: "what the emergency may be, o Great Vice-Captain" for she saw the call was made from Squalo's cell. When she heard a different voice, one she did not recognise, politely begging her pardon, a horrible feeling, the same one as before spread throughout her body. She could feel her heart beat quicken. And when that small polite voice relayed to her the news of Varia's condition and Squalo's in particular, she knew her heart had completely stopped.

She was _sure _it happened but couldn't quite remember it; an entire minute of her life in fact shall remain forever unknown to her because that one minute she spent unaware and nearly catatonic. If it weren't for the constant screaming of her brain to get her act together and _go equip the room you prepared yourself with the necessities for heart surgery NOW you dumb broad, why do you think they called you? Move your fucking feet already, useless lump of meat _she wouldn't have gotten up before they arrived. But she did and thank god she was sitting down, or else she would have hit the floor like a brick.

As she scrambled out of the armchair, she heard the books fall from her lap but couldn't care less; what she should be paying more attention to though was the blanket that coiled around her feet and the broken mug because now, tangled, she was falling in the shards! She cut her hands and cheeks and she was sure her bare feet must have been riddled with porcelain, but she really couldn't feel it; she felt nothing: no pain, no discomfort, not even a hindrance as she took each feverish step. Concern, fear, determination and a mild taste of her own bile were the only things she had the capacity to experience at the moment and all in the correct doses: so concerned she was, the acid of her stomach rose to her throat because she was so afraid he wouldn't make it but she'd be damned if she didn't do her best and then some to keep him alive!

Besides a little bruise here and there and some scrapes were nothing compared to-

Ah hell, she couldn't even think about it. She only focused on the scalpels, the depressants and that chapter she just read on how to stitch someone up with minimum scarring. She doubted it would be too effective, but all she had to do was give it a try. After all, if she worried on how to minimise the scar it meant she was definite Squalo would survive the surgery…

The first person to enter the ER-like room was a man she had never met before, pushing a stretcher with a very unconscious white haired vice-captain lying on top of it; the second person was a breathless Lussuria. The third person was Xanxus, carted around in a wheelchair, not only conscious but also bloodied, incapacitated and enraged beyond belief. There was something that resembled sadness and—wait. Where was his arm? He had lost _**an arm**_!? How?

The acidic taste from before returned full throttle and she could not fathom how she managed to keep it down, or fight that fainting spell that came over her. She definitely swooned though because she went from standing next to the bed-turned-table, nearly on top of the counter. But she had to support herself, because Squalo wasn't there to catch her; because the boss wasn't there to grab her; they were both…

Those four followed a flood of people in white clothes, holding their hands high, palms facing their chest; there was a surgical mask covering half their faces and it was only then when Francesca realised these people must have been back-up or more accurately real professionals of the field, with degrees and everything with plenty of experience for the first thing they did was check her supplies and grab whatever was needed.

Her head was still spinning from before and somehow everything felt so surreal; what was she supposed to do? Squalo looked so…lifeless. Yet it felt like someone was calling her name; it was so surreal. And-and-

"FRANCESCA!"

She jumped! Someone was indeed calling her name. Was it Xanxus's voice…? She turned to him; indeed he was looking thunderous, eyes wide in exasperation; the moment she focused, really focused, with a curt nod of his head turned her attention to the team of surgical staff. They were all just standing there, hands raised, looking at her as if waiting for something. With a start, she made the connection: they were waiting for her! Her orders even…

And then one of them asked: "Doctor Tutsi, what's first?"

That's right; priorities. Wait, did they call her _doctor Tutsi_? No, this was not the time for sentimentalities. "You two treat Xanxus" she practically commanded the two people on the left "and the rest four will help me with Squalo; anyone who has no business being here please leave immediately."

She had noticed the rest of the Varia elite making their way inside and hadn't had the heart to tell them get out, seeing she was in such a state herself, but the more she thought about it the more she realised none was sterile like she had made the room and herself and they would only bring unneeded germs…

She made few but decisive steps, towards Squalo and getting her tools. She stood directly above him then and knew what she had to do; she started, along with the rest. She had to-she couldn't think. Why could she not think? She looked up and saw Levi, Bel and Lussuria literally abuzz, looking at her accusingly! When she simply looked away – she really had not time for this – the buzzing only increased! Ugh, she could feel the headache forming and adding to the fact somehow she couldn't see right, it only made everything. So. Much. wo—

"You heard he doctor" Xanxus's voice cut through all protests "leave."

"But boss, you and Vice-captain Squalo—!"

"You heard the doctor," he repeated absolutely, teeth greeted as someone cauterised his arm "_leave._"

There was no room for further argument; they all hang their heads and retreated outside.

"Thank you."

She couldn't recognise her own voice, deep and hoarse as it was. Why? Maybe because she hadn't used it for so long…but there was something else, just at the edge of her mind she couldn't quite pint point? Was it grief? Worry?

"Stop crying doctor; you look less reliable."

She dared not take her hands off of Squalo but she finally noticed what was clouding her vision and made her head spin: tears. Tears that gave her a wrapped image of her surroundings. She closed tight and opened wide her eyes twice; the tears were gone. Now she could concentrate. "You with the long blond hair, name?"

"Celeste."

"You are in charge of the bloodwork and the stats; if anything codes you must know why. You with the red hair"

"Agni."

"You are the extension of my hand from now on; stay close and help me with the little things. And you must be Hiroko from the previous time; you do whatever you did then. The one left, you do all that's left. Let's all do our best and make sure the boss doesn't lose a second right hand today."

Her voice trembled so much, she didn't bear look up or even glance at Xanxus with the edge of her eyes; calling everyone by first name, but not him, not out loud. She couldn't; if anything happened to Squalo, it would be her fault that's how she felt. She needed to depersonalise both him and the vice-captain if she were to save his life. And she'd be damned, damned for ever, if she didn't do every single thing in her power.

"The boss's legs seemed to have suffered major damage but due to Lussuria it seems he'll walk again so we're thinking of focusing on reattaching his own hand-"

"The boss will do just fine with a prosthetic," she countered immediately "so just make sure it won't turn septic and tend to the rest of the problems."

"But if we hurry, we can definitely-!"

"Making sure he'll walk as fast as possible and without any hitches is your first priority; the hand is _**not**_."

"But the boss-"

"The boss, the boss, have you asked the boss what he wants?"

"Well, no."

"Ask him then."

That was the only time she graced anyone with a look for the next ten hours: she looked straight at him, challenging yet incontestable; he was comprehensive of the silent terms she threw at him: no matter what, you're not coming out whole. And if Squalo makes it, you'll get the prosthetic. Or else, your right hand is lost to you forever; fair trade.

It was only seconds, but it felt like hours till he spoke, essentially repeating himself: "you heard the doctor."

The corner of her mouth twitched upward as she returned to her own task; as the others started complaining, he only needed to fix them with a particularly strict glare to stop them altogether. She had no idea why he was giving her such authority, but she'd be lying if she said she didn't wholeheartedly appreciate it. Because, not only did these two do exactly as she ordered from then on, the other four never dared dispute her. not even when she took the risqué decision of asking them to escort Xanxus out the room and come back once he was safely at his bed.

Oddly enough, Xanxus too respected her call; he let himself be carted away with his last image being that of Francesca wiping a bloodstained hand on her scrubs and using the other as a pointer for Agni.

It was two hours after Squalo was brought in that they managed to find a suitable heart for him; his own wasn't completely gone, the sole reason they managed to keep him alive for so long, but it was failing fast. She had no idea how they procured one so fast but she felt better not know; what had initially horrified her was the fact the hepatic portal vein, the one pumping blood from spleen to liver, had been severely damaged. That created all the wrong conditions for a heart transplant, because it eventually led to pulmonary hypertension…which meant they couldn't outright give him a new heart. They would have to combine the donor's with his own heart.

That, apparently, wasn't the orthodox way and she wasn't even an expert. She felt all the more pressure because of that. This procedure had major drawbacks but at least held a large, in her opinion, positive: if the donated heart started failing after some time, they could take it out and leave only Squalo's. after all, most hearts that don't fail immediately take a long time to, more than enough for his original heart to heal completely. So maybe, following the heterotopic procedure wasn't such a bad thing.

Maybe.

After the heart arrived, the surgery took seven full hours. Francesca felt incredibly lucky to be amongst such skilled and experienced surgeons and nurses because truly without their contribution, she wouldn't have succeeded.

Ten hours had passed when she took her first step out of the room; he was the last one to leave, checking and double-checking his vitals for over half an hour before she left him completely alone, despite knowing that Hiroko was bound to return within minutes from the moment she left him. It was so otherworldly; her beautiful, entire-floor hotel room had transformed in the most luxurious waiting room she had ever seen. Varia members spilled over from the couches, or stood ramrod straight next to furnishings. No one looked calm while everyone did their best not to appear too pessimistic.

It wasn't their fault completely, as she had instructed the people who left before her not to say anything conclusive to anyone—she wouldn't want to find some major issue in her last check up and destroy whatever hopes they would have if anyone said anything positive.

So it was only expected that the moment her presence was noticed for everyone to circle her and start asking questions. They sounded more than a million to her, but she couldn't answer so many; thus she opted to say "he's still alive; he hasn't rejected the heart. So far…so good."

The overstatement of the century.

She managed to break through the wall of people, Lussuria being the last block of bricks, and headed straight to the boss's room—her bedroom. She didn't have to do anything to capture his attention, even if he was facing away, lying instead of sitting. His eyes were closed, but she knew he could hear her perfectly because his breathing was laboured and it had nothing to do with his injuries. "Squalo has escaped with his life so far, but it will take more than two days to know if he's escaped the danger, too. Not to mention it will take seven days for him to get up again."

Of course, Lussuria, Levi and Bel had followed her inside. Mammon was already there though; by the looks of it she had just interrupted his report. As she examined him, Mammon looked…happy about something, yet openly worried about the vice-captain. There was some sort of glow he could not suppress.

She looked at him searching for something. "Finally some good news?" she inquired hopefully yet there was something very guarded in her tone.

"Yes!" Wow; Mammon sounded enthusiastic. "The curse is broken!" Curse? "I'm finally able to go back to my former self…little by little anyhow…I will age like everyone else."

She was on her feet for more than ten hours straight, it was night already and her head was already overflowing with information; she had to piece together what he told her to come up with a lame, and very tired "You mean you got what you wanted?"

"Yes."

"That's…that's wonderful! I'm happy for you; I'm so, so happy for you."

His goal was achieved; he reached it. What they've been fighting for, he got it. They didn't war in vain; they didn't get hurt in vain. If he-…he won't in vain. Her breathing became shallow and rugged. Her knees felt weak. She became weak and tears started spilling excessively and uncontrollably from her eyes. Before she knew it, she had slid on the ground, right through Lussuria's fingers, who had made a valiant even if futile attempt to support her.

"I'm happy for you I'm really happy for you. I know I'm crying and they don't look like tears of joy but I'm really," she stopped to manage a breath "honestly" another pause "most sincerely happy for you. I-" Panting, she couldn't take a proper breath; she felt her lungs burn. She had never cried so much in her life. "I'm, I'm so sorry…"

Levi could not say anything. Lussuria did. He leaned over the sobbing scientist, cradling her in his arms. "Is he…that bad?"

A whimper escaped her but none considered it an answer due to the fact she was such a mess. But it still felt like she couldn't answer due to the severity of the situation as well, so Bel came up with another tactic.

"On a scale from one to ten with one being dead and ten being healthy, where is Squalo? Five?" Silence. "Four?"

"Three."

"Three!?" She simply nodded.

"What does 'three' mean?"

"Not dying."

Mammon stared, dumbstruck. "But I was only…was it too long? Was I too late?"

"Yes" she replied after a long time "your illusions didn't reach him fast enough I'm afraid." She tried to stand but didn't have the strength necessary. "I'm tired…I'll just go back and…try to-sleep."

Another wasted effort later, Lussuria picked her up without even asking. "Franny-chan; if you're not at your best, who knows how well Squalo will recover? Sleep lots and have a big meal once you wake up."

She was already asleep. The man's smile was sad. "Boss; you don't mind if I leave her here, do you?" He took his lack of reaction as consent and gently positioned her some centimetres away from Xanxus on the bed. He took off her shoes for her and covered her. "If anything changes with Squalo or she's absolutely necessary for something, I'll tell them to come get her."

By now everyone had either left or was waiting at the threshold. "I hope she has a long, uninterrupted sleep."

With his last wish, Lussuria closed the door behind him, frowning and sombre.

.

.

**"Wake up."**

Xanxus's harsh tone tore through her semi-consciousness. She didn't know how long it'd been; she didn't know how much sleep she did manage to catch up on to in the end. Two things she was sure of though: Squalo hadn't had any out of the ordinary changes and she didn't get the rest she needed. Her bleary eyes didn't want to open but she willed them at least one crack up; she wanted to look at the boss.

Very, very difficultly, she managed to roll on her left side and face Xanxus. Maybe the verb face was too particular because honestly, she still couldn't keep her eyes open long enough to do that.

"Wake up doctor; you're needed."

So little words and yet she was in overdrive in an instant! She threw the covers off of her while her feet found her shoes; she rushed to the bathroom to throw cold water at her face. "Before you break a leg or something I'm the patient. Squalo has been stable since you fell asleep four hours ago."

"Oh." Her relief was palpable. "What's the matter? Does your hand hurt? Worse, does it sting?"

"No, it's my legs."

There was a significant amount of inflammation on his wounds. She stared so shocked; he thought her eyes grew two sizes. "Why in earth didn't you tell anyone sooner? Don't make more work for me!"

She stormed out of the room like thunder, scorching whatever she touched—his skin included. He was trying; he was trying to pretend things were better; he could afford teasing her; he wasn't going to be left one member short. Everything would be back to normal in no time…but he couldn't ignore her tears. She was sleeping yet still, she wept. Nightmares plagued her and she didn't stop tossing and turning for a moment.

Four hours and the only person who knew the condition of Squalo's health better than anyone cried like a baby. If that damn shark made it out alive after all, he would have a lot of things to answer for, making his caregiver cry one of them. Heh, he better make it out alive! Wasn't he the one who promised he'd see Xanxus become boss? That he'd help him? As long as he drew breath, he could potentially be the next boss so he wasn't allowed to kick the can before him!

Plain and simple really: Squalo had no right to die before him. if he dared pull a stunt like that…god help him.

Yet minutes had passed and Francesca hadn't returned. What could be taking her so long? He didn't want to try and walk on these legs of his, not to mention that would amount to even more work for her and god help him with her whining, so he simply waited for a piece of news…which came five minutes after his realisation in the form of a very nervous, young Japanese girl with pitch black hair. Hiroko, if he remembered correctly.

"Why isn't the doctor back?"

"She sent me in her place…"

"That wasn't my question."

Hence, the reason the girl was anxious; she visibly flinched at his tone. "Squalo…was coding. It was code blue."

"Which means?"

"Patient is in cardiac arrest; requires emergency medical attention."

* * *

><p><strong>AN**: Yes, Im evil; yes the next one will come very soon. Week-soon. Stay tuned.

Review if you would and bye bye~


	30. Eventually is now

**A/N**: Well, this baby turned out much bigger and more difficult that I expected. Hell, it's even bigger than last one. Dunno what is wrong with me; I literally pumped it out in four days - the time I had at my disposal to write - . Meh, inspiration counts for a lot. And I would like to apologise because this was supposed to be yesterday but I just hadn't time to finish. So here it is, a day later.

Anyway, thank you lovely people who reviewed, messaged, alerted and all those good things...you're the best. Also, this is the second to last chapter or something; I'll be wrapping things up in the next or the other one...depends on the size. So be prepared; the end of an era is approaching. xD

Btw, if you find any mistakes of grammar or the like, please forgive them; I had close to zero time to revise this!

Disclaimer: I don't own KHR etc.

* * *

><p>This night – because now it was late at night – was starting actually pretty well! none had woke her in four hours so Squalo was as well as he could be, the rest were holding up admirably and though Xanxus was a little worse than he should be she didn't mind. Why? Because that's fixable! Ah, fixable; what a wonderful word! Describing her favourite type of trauma.<p>

She actually had a small bounce in her step!

And then she heard the most horrible thing she could ever hear: the beeping; the tiny device that was strapped to her belt, it went off. And that could only mean one thing: Squalo was flat-lining…she abandoned whatever she was doing and blindly ran to the ER.

"OW!"

"OW!"

She rammed straight into Hiroko who seemed to be heading to the same place. The girl grabbed her forehead in pain, knocked down on the floor. "I'm so sorry!" Francesca pulled her up immediately and apologised again. They both ran into the ER together.

It wasn't ten seconds later that the room was filled with nurses and surgeons, everyone a tool at the ready and no one being of any use to her for they were all spouting nonsense—or that's what it felt like. She found out that actually following their advice led to faster results. But everyone talking at the same time did no one any good…

"Agni, you come help me again. I'll need to more; the rest of you can go. Ah, Hiroko! You go give the boss some meds because his leg wounds have severe inflammation. I'll come once I'm finished from here. Celeste, you are in charge of the tools!"

Everyone nodded and did as she asked; she really had to thank the boss for that later: asserting her like this gave her the chance to be more effective. So she took a deep breath and braved to make the necessary incisions and motions again, trying to block the fact that this was someone dear to her, not a simple corpse from some morgue once more. But his blasted hair was so white and so long, they were everywhere! Constantly reminding her of who was on the table…and what really was at stake.

That was okay though; she worked her best under pressure.

.

It wasn't earlier than three hours that Xanxus saw Francesca again. Well after three am she stumbled inside her room. He heard before he saw though, because her sobbing was so loud, it was unbearable. He experienced two emotions at that moment: the first was a reflexive one. It was unfathomable annoyance. Did she have to _feel_ so noisily? The second was pure unadulterated fear. Had Squalo…? Her crying was far more persistent and ugly that any other time he has ever heard it and boy has he heard it a lot. It also felt like a personal defeat she was crying on the first place, but he tried to push that thought aside for now.

So when the door was finally open and she crawled inside clumsily yet with a modicum of stealth, thinking she was quieter now than before, he immediately sat up. That could and did not go unnoticed. She forced herself to stop with the horrid panting due to lack of proper breathing from all the wailing, wiping frantically at her eyes, but to no avail because more and more came indiscriminately.

He had actually started getting worried. Had that shark abandoned him? Hey this is no joke! He promised and he had to make good on that, not _die_! As if he was allowed. He didn't ask anything though; he merely let her ride out the entire ridiculous cocktail of emotion surging through her – he could swear he heard her laugh somewhere in there, too – and then let her speak first.

As she was robotically giving him his usual meds, the serums, and he obediently drank them with great haste, she explained the situation.

"I'm sorry I couldn't make it earlier but…there was an emergency with Squalo." She had wiped at her eyes so much they stung, but it probably had to do with her handling all these medicine, too. "It's better now, but worse than last time I left him in there." She managed to hold back every little thing but her fists tightened around her knees desperately. "But now…I can't do anything anymore. Everything in my arsenal is exhausted. If he lives or dies, from now on, is entirely— up to— him."

And she was in pieces. He watched her break and fall, chip by chip, on the ground in front of him. She hid her face in her hands and cried uninhibitedly, crouching on the floor.

He wished he could regain use of his legs right at that moment for the sole purpose of standing up and walking all the way to Squalo. There, he'd give him a well-earned punch for daring to play dead for so long! Not to mention he made their wimpy scientist cry on more than one occasion. But maybe, just maybe, he wanted to get out of bed and kneel next to her. Maybe he wanted to pick her up, just like Lussuria had done only some hours ago, and put her to bed next to him. After all, she took care of practically everyone; yet no one was really committed to taking care of her so one little gesture that way could go a long way.

In a schooled tone, he said carelessly: "If you did all you can, I'm pretty sure he'll be his insufferable self in no time."

A snort of sincere laughter escaped her. But, as if that signified the end of nothing important, she stopped; she stopped panting, sobbing, crying, everything. She only picked herself up from the floor, hugging herself as she went and buried herself underneath the blankets. She turned her back on him and slept.

The next day was surreal, almost otherworldly; when she finally mustered enough courage to get out of bed, she realised she was on her own. Xanxus had left the room; did someone cart him away while she was asleep? It couldn't have been that long. No one woke her in a hurry to tell he something horrible though, so that in itself was proof nothing too bad had happened. She felt a little, only a little better and decided she could do with a walk about the room—maybe even get out at a balcony or something to feel the air on her face. Maybe it would make her feel less depressed.

But when she walked out, she saw the most unexpected, cruellest sight in her entire life second to only one: Squalo was up and about, shouting at the top of his lungs to the people who came to visit, while Xanxus was inclining at a couch, both hands there and legs unhurt. And the rest were so jovial, equally unhurt and worry-free. She froze. She felt she had stepped into her last night's dream: everyone was great, no one was hurt and nothing was ever out of place.

But she knew it was not right. Not only did something feel completely out of order, there was also this nagging sensation of…deceit. This wasn't her dream come true, no; this was someone trying to convince someone else that there was nothing amiss. If everything was so sickeningly perfect, it could only mean it was not real. Squalo walking about and shouting? He could barely breathe on his own. They were playing a dangerous game of charades for their guests, Tsunayoshi Sawada and his friends and she could feel her soul slowly crushing her heart because how dare they?

How dare they make it so that Squalo seems unharmed? He's still in a critical condition. He's still fighting for his life in a battle that came about only because he joined them! He lost his vitality because he was fighting for their sakes! How dare they coddle them? Her anger was so potent she finally understood how the boss managed to make it manifest like fire; if that was the amount of rage he usually felt, no wonder he exploded! She wanted to match down there and slap Mammon so hard her hand paralysed! He was the one in charge of this farce, to be sure, and she would be damned if she allowed anyone to diminish the sacrifices they had to make!

She tried to move. Her feet wouldn't carry her though. She was effectively glued to the ground. She had only just realised that…she heard him earlier. Squalo's shouting, illusion-Squalo's shouting, that's what woke her. His voice got her out of bed and his "VOI" led her outside; unconsciously she was following him. She only wanted…it to be true. She had hoped and begged and pleaded this was reality.

But it wasn't. This was Mammon's illusions.

She never thought she'd ever be so upset with someone who was only trying their best but there she was, feeling furious at both Mammon and Squalo for this situation; why did he have to produce such a realistic projection? And why did Squalo have to get so injured? Just doing your best should be enough for everyone to be safe; to be healthy; to be good.

She turned-about and shut the door behind her. She didn't come out of her room until after all the guests were gone, despite her presence being requested more than once. She'd deal with the consequences later. That came, as predicted, whence the new boss of Vongola, the high schooler, had left. She refused to give any explanation—she didn't so much as speak. She simply shot a disdainful look of judgement to anyone who was lecturing her.

When she saw the boss had no intention of doing so, she promptly turned her back on everyone and locked herself in Squalo's personal ER. There she prayed, stayed and watched over him for the most part of the day, for every day that followed. She only came out to eat, bathe and follow up on Xanxus who was the only one as hurt as his vice-captain though thankfully less. Heh, she had no time to grieve about him, too but she certainly wasn't immune to the sight of watching him, proud and independent, confined to a chair or a bed. Not that it was an unusual sight, as he always opted to spend his time there even when whole, but there is a big difference between wanting to and having no other option. It hurt. It hurt because if the boss wasn't fine, how was anyone else expected to be? When the strongest man was in shambles it only came naturally the less powerful were torn apart.

So she couldn't face him.

She was being selfish, certainly; but she had earned it. She cared but she really didn't care. It was a conflicting time for her, but she swore to herself: till Squalo leaves this ER, either for the morgue or the recovery room, she would stay by his side. With the cross her aunt had given her in one hand and medical supplies on the other, she would fight with him for as long as he needed. She would be there for him in his hour of need and help him like he did her.

She wouldn't let him die. Because the mere idea of it hurt like a dagger to her heart; she could only imagine how the boss must have been feeling, but even that she refrained from doing. For her own pain was unbearable; she couldn't stand to feel or even start to feel someone else's who was surely deeper and stronger than hers.

Francesca was night in-night out right there by his side. Sadly, her prediction came out to be true though; there was nothing else she could do: Squalo was stable. He was too stable; he was, in fact, in a coma. He hadn't created one single problem for anyone—he was being perfectly non-emergency. Of course, that meant no progress on the getting-better part, too. And that's what ate at her. She even tried to administer some meds who would maybe snap him out of the coma, but his blood-work revealed that he was in severe danger of clotting if she did, so she refrained.

And she prayed.

Oh dear did she pray! She prayed to God, to Mary, the Holy Spirit…! She prayed to all the saints she could remember, if only they guided him back, back to them. Xanxus had scoffed at her for relying on someone else other than her own abilities, claiming the battle was lost if she did, but apparently he had missed the fact she had done everything within the realm of human ability already and was now up to him. So praying did no one any harm. Strangely enough, she heard those objections not from the boss himself, but some other Varia members, who were suspiciously loud in the waiting room, as if they wanted her to hear their scathing remarks.

Well, the boss had every right to be unkind; they didn't.

.

.

.

It'd been ten days. During that time, they had renovated the room to accommodate a proper bed for a patient and next to it they left the surgical table. It was made in a very comfortable ER-like hospital room and she was the most devoted nurse there was.

She was washing his hair currently, just after Hiroko Agni gave him his bath; she knew he loved them clean and soft and generally well taken care of—proof was the fact they still existed in such length without getting cut even once after all these years. So, more careful than holding a baby, she was now combing through them. She always liked his hair; they were so beautiful. She experienced a welcome feeling of comfort whenever she did this, too. It was such a mundane task, such a routine thing to do for someone, it was soothing. She got to talk to him that way, too, despite him being unconscious, so she was relatively at ease whenever she did this.

"You should really wake up you know" she had said offhandedly "it's getting so tiresome to stand watch over you like this." His vitals were so stable though, she could hear the monotone beeping. "I'm slowly becoming the Hunchback of Notre dame. Not to mention I can feel the fat on my thighs depositing from all the comfort food I've been gorging."

_Maybe he would wake up soon_, she wished like always. "Chocolate, pizza, all the Japanese pasta and the burgers…of course my boobs remain the same size though; only my butt grows." _One of these days he'll answer me. _"And it's all your fault, you prat."

"But I…warn'djabout…the chocolate."

"Yeah you did but-…"

She stopped talking.

Very, very slowly, she raised her eyes from the long strands to his face. His vitals were still stable but his breathing was laboured compared to before. Because now he was…smirking. And he had spoken. She heard it! The entire universe paused for just one second.

"Sq…Squ…alo you're…"

"Hungr'. All your food talk got me in a mood."

"Squ…you…you…"

She rushed to hug him; the half metre between her and him was covered in 0.2 seconds! It was painful and stifling but it conveyed each and every one of her emotions with perfect clarity and volume. "I can't believe you're awake and, and talking and I'm so emotional I can't stop oh dear God thank you, thank you so much, you brought him back, he's back-you're back and…and…I'm so happy."

She was of course crying and making no sense to him who'd only woken up, but even he realised it wasn't just a day or two he had been out, because when he _smelt_ the air around him, it was bad. And no matter what she'd been saying, her cheeks were sunken and her hold was weak, all direct effects of malnutrition. The way she hugged him, he could feel her ribs, too.

"How long have I been out?"

"T-ten days. Ten days you've been" sniffle "unconscious since I operated on you."

"That's…long…"

"Yes it was! Everyone was so worried about you! Lussuria was so anxious, he dyed all of his bangs the same colour by accident! Not to mention how the boss must be feeling since you've been friends for so long! And what about me!? I was dying of concern because I did all I could yet you wouldn't move a muscle and your eyes stayed shut and I thought you might die you giant asshole!"

She reflexively went to punch him but remember his condition the last moment and withdrew her hand. "You huge idiot! I can't even slap you anymore! And I even promised myself I'd hit you so hard my hand would go numb when you woke up! From making me worry! And making everyone worry, too! And even Xanxus had that miserable expression! How could you, you stupid shark? Scaring us all like that. I should—!"

"SQU-CHAN!" Lussuria came bursting through the door! "Oh I knew I heard someone shouting! You're finally awake~. Ne, ne Franny-chan don't shout at him first thing; we need to coddle him for now. We can be as rough as we like once he's out of the bed."

There was a very sinister aura surrounding him; both the patient and Francesca seemed to notice it and leaned ever so discreetly, backwards through all the pain and tears.

"Never mind that; the vice-captain is finally awake!"

"As if he wouldn't wake; I told you vice-captain Squalo is made of the sturdiest stuff!"

"He'd never allow anyone to take his place, too."

"Ah yes, Squ-chan is very responsible after all. He'd never let anyone else be abused by the boss in his stead."

Booming laughter escorted a flight and mirth drove anxiety away.

.

The vice-captain is finally awake was the message of the day—of the week even. It spread like wildfire on their floor; within moments everyone was visiting and minutes later they had to direct people in and out in order not to overcrowd not the patient but the room. If it fit normally 10 people, there were about 50 at the same time. The only ones never leaving and never changing were _them_: Lussuria, Levi, Mammon and Belphegor. Xanxus couldn't visit, at least not on his own, and they all wisely figured it'd be best to bring him when everyone else had cleared out. In an unspoken agreement, they all left that duty up to Francesca who had already left, as if the first person out would be the person to go to the boss.

That wasn't her real reason for running out when she did, though; possessed by her overreaching, overarching emotions, she felt she was suffocated by them. All of her relief to seeing him alive and _able to speak_, despite the coughing or the wheezing, was immediately replaced by a crushing happiness. This once the tears were genuinely of joy and her smile was not forced, in order to convince herself he'd make it; he had made it.

Now she had to convince herself not to worry anymore because the worst has come to pass.

Had it though? Had it really come to pass? Was this the worst he'd ever be in and it would all go uphill from here? He'd never be hurt again, at least not this much; he'd be safer from now on. Or that's what she had told herself the previous time she had found herself looking down at Squalo with a syringe in her hands. This was it, she had said, if only he made it through…then he'd be safe forever. But it turned out forever lasted only a few months! And just moments ago, she had really believed it: if only he made it this once, nothing bad would ever happen again.

So how could she be sure? After all, this once Xanxus ended up confined to a bed and lost an arm. His replacement was coming along as perfectly as it could, and his tendons were healing as much as she had expected but he was still put in this horrid, horrid situation.

What if, next time, instead of everyone coming back safely it was Xanxus on that operating table? What if Squalo was dead? What if Xanxus…?

She felt her stomach lurch and staggered; her hand instinctively grabbed on to the first sturdy thing in sight—the dresser. She had run to the bedroom without realising because she found her way to the small bathroom without a hitch…where she proceeded to throw up what little her abdomen was trying to hold down. Tears of fears and effort stained her face but she would not let them linger—the moment she found her footing, she washed her face. Her worries were very reasonable but tragically mistimed.

This was a cause for celebration and celebrate she would, right by everyone's side; she's a proper Varia and will act like it! For how long she will remain though…

She took a very large, rich breath and released it only when she couldn't hold it anymore. She repeated the motion. A minute later she felt prepared; after all, as she caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror, her smile was reaching all the way to her ears so no matter what else, she must have been happy. She straightened her back, filled her lungs with pride and fulfilment and walked outside.

When she looked at him, there was a touch of concern and dread in his eyes, and she felt proud of herself for noticing because it was nearly imperceptible. So she showed him the smile she sported in an effort to make him feel better. "Squalo is finally awake."

Thusly, Xanxus had received the message, too. The deed was done.

He hadn't paid him a visit till late in the afternoon when Francesca appeared, pushing his wheelchair. She stood very…woodenly. Was there something wrong with her, everyone seemed to wonder, but none out-loud. They all just stared at both of them, the boss and the doctor, till the second said in a very eerie tone it was time for them to leave and allow some privacy between the two highest ranking Varia members. She herself pushed him to the edge of Squalo's bed and left along with everyone else.

"He'd call me back when he wants to go," she informed the curious men.

"Makes sense."

She hadn't been waiting for five minutes when Xanxus's voice called out to her. she couldn't help her curiosity though so she had to ask. "What did you manage to say in such a short time?"

"All that was needed."

_Oh how manly of him_, she mocked in her brain, _such a Spartan answer for an equally Spartan visit_. God forbids he gives a real answer and has real feelings no…those are only for women and people beneath him. The damn fool! She wanted to tell him so many things. Now how could she ever share all of the things what waged a war inside her and put her in the smack middle of so many dilemmas? They were all "feeling-related". And he was so proud to give such an answer, too…! Discontent as she was, she made a grand decision: she'd solve this problem all by herself; no one would help her. Not even her aunt's pretty little picture.

She was on her own.

.

.

It would take about a month to get Squalo and Xanxus back on their feet; what with his body being in one place for so long, not a single muscle moving, Squalo would certainly need physiotherapy. Xanxus too but much less. Surely, they tried to prevent that but if one person isn't conscious and the other could not walk then there was the matter of Squalo's heart and how well he fared as well as how much the surgery will pose a problem and his stitches may reopen. Also, there was the heart medication and he'd never really be rid of that. But that was easy to find. Xanxus's new hand would require some getting used to as well, but that was entirely up to other people—calibrations and the like.

And even after she left the Varia, she could easily monitor them with weekly visits, even monthly after a while, at her own private practise. Of course, she would be a good girl and stay the entire month Squalo needed to get in shape and then some…but once that was over, that was it.

She'd leave.

She'd promptly leave the Varia and start a business of her own. She had amassed a reasonable sum that would allow her to open up her business and live off of it for two years, considering she doesn't receive a single patient in the span of those two years. Obviously, her plan was to live off of her funds till she had a good clientele and **could** make a living.

She had everything planned out for those two years: suppliers, location, and field of specialization…! All she had to do now was announce it! Yeah, that would not be easy at least not in this crowd. She almost knew exactly what everyone was going to do: Lussuria would complain about losing her only daughter and try to talk her out of it; Levi would probably cry and hug her, saying it was alright if that was her calling but how could that be her calling when they weren't in it? Bel would be very against it, claiming he did not want to lose a toy and a servant; Mammon would be completely neutral and Squalo would be adamantly against it.

But none of that mattered so long as Xanxus said he was on her side. If only she could make sure of that, if only she could have his support on this decision then no one else dare contradict her. And why wouldn't he support her? He'd shown definite signs of improvement in character and he had not made life difficult for her once since Squalo fell unconscious. Instead, he'd been very understanding, empowering and encouraging. In that spirit, there was no way he'd say no to her.

And yet, it was him she found hardest to tell. It hadn't been a week since they had returned to Italy and half of that time that she had made up her mind about leaving and yet, she was still avoiding him like the plague. Mainly _because_ she had made up her mind. How would she break it to him? How would he react? He would certainly let her do what she liked but how would he take it? After all, he was a proud, selfish man. How would he let her know she was free to go wherever she liked?

And if she was so sure, why was she still hesitating? She wouldn't look him in the eye, the little time they spent together when she brought him his medicine. In fact they had barely spent an hour worth the time alone for more than a week! And as time passed, day after day, she made her visits shorter, more laconic. She had abandoned speaking to him altogether when the month was drawing to a close. She had no idea what sort of message he was getting out of it but there went her plan to cultivate a positive environment so he would say yes.

And why would he say yes anyway? Sure, she'd come back and visit the place regularly so she wouldn't exactly cut ties with them thus only logical to let her make her own way in this world but…who ever said Xanxus was logical? She knew better than that. And now she was trying her hardest to find a way to break it to him that wouldn't make him break anything.

Impossible.

Oh why had she not said anything until now? Squalo and Lussuria, the only ones with access to her, could tell she was jittery about something but, naturally, couldn't know what it was. They did take many guesses of course none of which find home. Both Squalo and Lussuria correctly assumed it was linked with the boss but further than that they could not tell.

The funniest thing of all was that Squalo would tell her many times to go speak to the boss, an advice she never followed, for everyone's sakes. She couldn't even tell what his mood is anymore, he had accused her; she had been so absent from his everyday reality that she didn't even know how upset he's been about everything. She chose not to believe him because a) she really didn't feel all that special and b) she really hoped she wasn't all that special if her plan was to succeed.

One day, she received a letter…it was from her parents. She had half a mind to tear it to pieces! She didn't and read it; she wanted to tear it to pieces again! But she refrained because if she really were to leave them, it wouldn't hurt to have a backup plan. It did hurt to think that was her backup plan, though. She'd really grow to resent them.

.

.

It finally came, the morning when she would have to go tell her boss her decision. Shamelessly, her things were already packed and the reservations already made. She'd borrow a car out of here and find herself in town by noon. All she needed was a good sales pitch and him in a good mood; oh let him be in a good mood, she relentlessly prayed on her way there.

She didn't knock on his door; simply let herself in, slowly and steadily. Observing the room around her, she found him standing by the window doors, looking outside. Ajar as they were, wind blew inside, making things fly in the draft. He looked nearly ethereal: bangs following the gust, his undone shirt dancing about him. But he remained there, completely unaffected. He looked…strong to her, a point of reference; a fixed point that, while everything else around him changed, he'd always be there to offer the solace of familiarity.

Or so she hoped.

Despite having his attention from the second he heard the door opening, he did not turn to face her. Well, that was awkward. She would have to begin this conversation alone, no help whatsoever. And where is the evidence he wanted to see her, as Squalo claimed? She was right there but he wouldn't even turn to look at her! What was he being petulant for? Ugh, fine, whatever; this simply served to steel her resolve to go through with this faster.

She couldn't even be bothered to take a deep breath, she only coughed. "Boss-"

"You're not leaving."

There was no question or hesitation in his voice. His tone was curt and absolute. She was left gaping. "J-just _how_-?"

"You're not leaving this house."

"Can we just talk abo-?"

"There's nothing to talk about."

How he wouldn't even look at her wounded her so much! "But if I could only-!"

"You don't have to; you ain't leaving. End of story."

"But I want to!"

"I don't care!"

She jumped back at the sound of him: harsh, unforgiving, and furious! It had nothing to do with the cold, calculated general tone he was using until now. She swallowed her words at the sight of him, for he finally turned around and he was so scary, she felt her heart sink at the pit of her stomach.

"You think you can just walk away? Pack up and leave without a hitch? If you dare take a step out of this house people will come after you. When you're a Varia, you're a Varia for life! There's no going back, no second guesses! You're here till the end of the line—either yours or ours!"

He had reached her now, all up in her face, glaring down at her from an alarming proximity. "You think he'll live forever? You think you will? We are an assassination squad—we assassinate! And sometimes, people try to assassinate us, too!"

Battling with herself not to cry, she looked away shamed yet angry. "If you couldn't cope with that you should have never accepted membership on the first place. No one forced you. What d'you think we'd do? Wave our swords around and play with toy guns for as long as we're active?"

He demanded attention by shouting in her ear, towering over her, circling her as she looked in different directions. "N-no, I didn't think-,"

"You didn't think what? We'd be in danger? While out killing people!?"

"No, I knew there was danger, of course there's danger; I didn't think you'd be in_ mortal_ danger!"

"Why!"

"Because you're strong! I didn't think I'd have to worry about someone dying ever again!" her composure now gone, she allowed her tears to fall but none of her nerve fell with them. "I lost my parents forever when I was a child because I saw them for what they really were; and despite horrible people they were weak and used and settled! Then you woke up and I lost my aunt when she could not protect herself because she was weak despite being so brilliant!

And I sat down and thought, what the common factor was—and it was their weakness! So, so if only I could find someone who's strong and sturdy and amazing then I wouldn't have to worry about it! I wouldn't have to worry about anyone dying, no more losses! No more…no more empty beds and spaces and routines I'd have to forget! Do you know how hard that is? Knowing you will never hug your aunt again—but she was only there just a moment ago. She was my only family, the only one I recognised; the only one that ever cared for me! And I lost her, just like that.

So I thought, I hoped, my new family, it'd be invincible. And I believed it; for one brief moment I really believed I had found a little dysfunctional family to call my own but…but then…why do I have to-?"

"Strong people die, too; that's the way of the world! You knew that!"

"Yes but I was scared! You're not supposed to die; you're not supposed to be so injured! You protect me out there and I protect you in here; but when I do my job I expect you to do yours and come back to do it again!"

"So leaving this place will make you stop caring? If you picked up and left suddenly you wouldn't care anymore?"

She hated his reasoning and how he made sense. "No, that's not-!"

He grabbed her by the arms; his hold was bruising. "In the remote chance you did manage to leave with your life, who do you think the first person we'd contact would be if something similar happened? Huh? You'd not come then?"

"Of course I'd-"

He increased the pressure, a feat she thought impossible. "You'd just turn your back on us?"

"No, I wouldn't!"

"Then why would you want to leave?"

"BECAUSE IT WOULDN'T HURT THE SAME! I see you every day, I cook for you; I smell like your stupid laundry!" Neither Xanxus nor she knew if she was using plural or not. "The distance would help. Lussuria is convinced he's my mother I've never had a better brother than Squalo and I'm pretty sure Levi already considers me his Queen and—and I only wanted to belong! But nothing ever goes right for me because when I got what I wanted and felt like part of a family again-"

He led her further in, dragging her by the arm. "Families are disappointing and messy and full of liars. We're not a family; we're a unit." He shook her and she was only millimetres away. "Once you're in, there's no out."

"But the pain won't stop…!"

"Leaving won't help!"

"How could you know!? How could _you _know about **my** pain?"

"_**Why don't you know about mine**_?" He drove her into a literal corner. He was whispering now but it ran louder than ever in her ears. "Where you gonna go?" He threw her against the wall, pinned there. His question felt too literal. "What about those you leave behind, you selfish bitch? So you're in pain; big deal! We all fucking hurt. We don't up and leave—we get over it. Life is a bitch; you can't close your eyes and pretend the bad things didn't happen! It's never the good things in life that make you who you are and why would you wanna be anyone else but yourself?"

She couldn't cry anymore; her throat was sore from all the shouting and constricted from the feelings that bubbled beneath the surface. He was so close, yet so far. She smothered a sob. "Cause then…I'd be happy…"

"I wouldn't."

Something inside her finally broke. She had never heard or seen him so…vulnerable ever before. He was open. He was being honest. No stupid macho speeches, just his opinion. She chuckled. "So it's okay as long as you're happy, is that it? And _I'm_ the selfish one?"

"I never claimed otherwise; I want the best and I always get what I want. And what I want now is you."

She stared. Um…what? Did he really just say that or was her brain making it up? She had run multiple scenarios in her head just before she came here and only one compelled her to stay; and it was currently developing right in front of her. Could she be sure she wasn't making it up? She would have loved to have pinched herself, but he'd left her no room. Instead, she could suddenly feel his hand on her hip, only touching at first and then slowly slithering at her back. Oh pray this was true; pray this was real!

She closed her mouth, hopefully not as awkwardly as she felt it. If he did notice, he gave no indication and kept pulling her closer. She could have exploded, so red her cheeks became.

"And why can't you be happy here? What's wrong with me?" Was he…asking her to stay? That's what it sounded like. _If _she heard right. She heard right, though, right? Ugh! It could break her heart how pained he sounded. She was so preoccupied with that, she nearly missed the fact he rested his forehead on hers.

…why was he so tender? What was going on!? Did she actually go there or was she still sleeping? And she was unreasonably hot already he didn't have to run his thumb along her chin so seductively, what was happening? He brought her flush against him, spinning her once.

_What. Is. air_?

He took a step forward; she followed. He made another and another until her feet hit against something soft, yet solid but she didn't care even if her feet had started bleeding. "So I've decided: you'll stay right here. Won't you?"

She gazed at him for the longest of times; this was a dream. _Please don't wake me_. "Of course I will."

The most self-complacent, mischievous smirk she had ever seen him wear, coming closer and closer until…he kissed her. There was nothing sweet or tender about that. Raw passion and desire crushed down upon her, with unforgiving ferocity! And then as soon as it dominated her, it was gone but she wanted more because it had felt _so good_ yet she couldn't even respond—

He shoved her! She completely lost her balance and fell backwards…onto the bed. He reached down and grabbed her leg; hands running all over it, landed on her shoe. He quickly yanked it off. He followed the same course with the other, only that one landed against the open door and closed it.

_Oh._

In an instant, he was at the foot of the bed on hands and knees, stalking towards her; first he almost touched her legs; then her hips; until he finally decided what to do with himself and busied his hands outlining her figure, inside or outside of her clothes. She quivered under his touch and he took that as a good sign because now his movements were sluggish on purpose, stalling everywhere, hitching her skirt up or pulling her stockings down.

There was a nasty smile on his face, a knowing one and he dived low, aiming for her neck. Never missing his target, he planted torturing kisses at the entire length of her very exposed, very enticing neck; he bit her once or twice. The adorable and less-adorable-and-more-arousing sounds that escaped her guided him as she, in an odd combination of shyness yet determination, flexed and sagged accordingly.

But she'd still not touch him.

Annoyed by the lack of contact, he assaulted her lips once more; but this once he was demanding, probing, goading. He hugged her so close she could feel the heat rise in him. It was only after she finally started responding, tentatively at first and timid in her motions, that he decided he was going to go further. Seeing his shirt was already open, he only needed to shrug it off, but not before he put her hands on him and guided her to do it for him.

Convinced she was dreaming, she allowed herself to be as forward as she wanted, enjoying the feel of his muscles on her hands that for the first time had every right to linger wherever they wanted! The shirt didn't last long and it was discarded at the same time he was reaching down for hers. She felt so alive; she couldn't stop touching him! She wanted to kiss him more, be kissed more, why were there still clothes between them? No matter he was already unbuttoning her shirt, kissing as he went higher; no matter how his dexterous hands had already removed her stockings.

And then she did something daring: she reached for the button of his trousers. He didn't intervene; he let her do it on her own, unbuttoning and unzipping—

"**BOSS**! **I just found all of Francesca's**-…things. In suitcases."

A panic-stricken Squalo had burst through the door, worry etched on his face; that slowly, steadily, _horribly _turned into realisation. "In her room," he completed what he had wanted to say, exceedingly awkward. Even more awkward than him, the purple faced scientist hid her shame in her hands, curling like a ball.

The glare Xanxus fixed him with was torn homicidal. "I will go now. Pretend I was never here. Bye; sorry. I'll see myself out."

The door shut behind him with a thud and they were left alone. The damage he dealt was crucial though because now she was sure she was awake; devastatingly awkward things like this only happened in real life, after all. Embarrassed beyond belief, she remained a little ball till she felt him withdraw. Peeking over her shoulder, she watched a disgruntled Xanxus staring daggers at the closed door.

"Um, I'll, err…I should…go now, too?"

"You don't have to-,"

Loud banging at the door stopped him and Levi surfaced behind it after a moment.

"**BOSS!** Francesca has packed her things! She's leav-…ing." Levi looked at Xanxus; then her; then Xanxus; then her. Then the shirt on the floor…horror struck him! "Forgive me, boss;" he prostrated himself "I have interrupted the consummation of your relationship." She almost fainted at the sound of the word consummation. "Forgive me; it will never happen again."

"It won't happen again 'cause I'll fucking kill you!"

"_Or I'll have died of shame…_!"

"Forgive me Francesca; I did not mean to make you feel awkward. I'm so sorry. I will take my lea-!"

He never finished his sentence because the stampede outside was too loud! Everyone spilled in the room then, with Lussuria in the lead, behind who came Bel and Mammon flew in the room!

"Boss, we heard from Squ-chan that our dear doctor is planning t-…_ooooooh_, mama sees now. Franny-chan isn't leaving; she's _relocating_. Though why you'd need suitcases for that my dear is beyond me."

Suddenly, Lussuria smacked everyone on the head! "Don't you see she's not decent? Look away! Ah, such beasts all of you are; none has my self-restraint. Let's turn around and leave now, leave these two alone, if you'd please."

"It doesn't matter anymore," she whispered through fingers "I'm just going to go back to my room now where I shall reside for the rest of eternity…"

He dug a finger between the skirt and her back to stop her, quite effectively, as she fell on him. "Or not."

They laughed; one curt nod from the boss though and everyone had stopped, turned about and disappeared. "Err," began tentatively "if I'm not going after all," the glare he shot at her for saying "if" was scary "then I should really get bat to my room, unpack and cancel my deposit on the two floors I booked for my practise."

"No. It'd be convenient to have you work there at least once a week; the rest of the time we can have some other doctor running it. More places to gather information from are always welcome."

"You're saying I should keep it? As mine?"

"Yes; it's your own money and your own time. The earnings and losses will be yours for the most part, too—about 80 percent. It's good to have a hobby. And since you actually like this Mother Teresa style…but you'll live here, you'll have only morning hours and no more than two emergencies a week."

He was speaking terms so fast; how could he do that? She was torn between thrilled and completely lost. "Thank you but…had you thought about this beforehand? You are awfully quick to lay down rules." He looked like even thinking the opposite was an insult. "But…how did you find out? I told no one. None at all."

"You're not that hard to read; once Mammon told me you'd been browsing for big spaces, Squalo mentioned you've been staring at your wardrobe too often and Levi relayed to me your sudden interest in taxes, I knew. And you're a coward. So what other option was there?"

"I-I'm not a coward!"

He snorted. "The bravest thing you ever did must have been emptying that bottle of tequila on me. Tch! Such a waste of good alcohol; that thing cost as much as half my bike." Her eyes widened. "It was from the good bottles."

She rested her face in her palm and shook it. "I am _never_ cutting down on expenses for medicine _ever again_. And here I worried that they altogether reached the total amount of ten thousand! If you're willing to give that much and more for something that all it does is give you cirrhosis then you better be willing to pay for that which makes you better."

"Your budget, your call."

"So, um, err, now I can go out right? Freely…" He only gave her a sceptical look. "I was thinking I would like to institute one day of the week to go and take care of my aunt's grave. Nothing grand, just, clean it up a bit, put flowers; make sure her candle is lit."

"You're so religious."

"I know…so?"

"I ain't getting married."

She rolled her eyes dramatically, rubbing her temples. "I don't care; I really don't care."

"What do you mean you don't care?"

"I mean I don't care. I'm only 23 anyway. And it's not like I'm going anywhere. You said it yourself: this is a lifetime gig. I'm in no hurry. I've no reason to get married."

He stared at her; she stared back. He kept staring. "This has to do with the letter your parents sent you."

"Wha-how-why—are you monitoring my mail?"

"Of course I am." Unfathomable betrayal was etched on her face! "I didn't read it."

"As if that makes anything better! Don't go reading who sends me things!"

"…you were sloppily planning your big escape so I took an interest; you're not one to talk."

"You can't make me feel guilty for going through my mail!" For one moment he almost did though, smart bastard; the way he simply looked away drove her crazy! "I bet this isn't the first time you did it anyway! Is it? Speak! You've done it again, haven't you? Haven't you?"

"And what are you gonna do about it?"

He wasn't even denying it… "Nothing. Just please don't do it again."

"It'll be more difficult now so no promises."

"Why?"

"Won't you _relocate_?" That was the first time she noticed she was actually sitting in his lap, talking without looking at him, not really. He spoke in her ear, making her shiver. "Let's not let all those suitcases go to waste." He slapped her ass, only this once he put enough force into it to make her stand. She let out a smothered yelp and jumped! "Move in, doctor."

She turned red at the well-veiled suggestion as an order and acquiesced with a small nod. "Oh and as far as that letter is concerned, we'll have to talk later. Nothing big, a trip maybe, I'll be back in a moment."

Despite her dubious words, he didn't question her. "Use Squalo for the heavy-lifting."

She gave him a thumbs up as she was leaving the room.

* * *

><p><strong>AN**: Things are moving along, moving along. But did I have you there, even for a moment? That she'd go. Did anyone believe it, I'm curious? Well, if I actually liked the drama her departure would bring I might have done it, but too much drama isn't my writing style I think. Sometimes it is fun to read or watch though. Ah, I'm getting side-tracked. Time to close.

So the final chapters have arrived! Any and all forms of feedback are much appreciated; you know what to do, dears! See you next month!


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